The Stories Of Hyrule Farm
by mattunknown
Summary: The story of the newest farmer who tries to start a new life in Stardew Valley. Follow Zelda as she finds her place in the small community and begins to fall for a certain local artist. - Rated (M) because I don't want to have to worry about censorship. Somethings are different from the game. Oc x Leah -
1. Chapter: 1 (The Hunt For Spice Berries)

The Morning sun swept over the valley as the day began Zelda woke up to the sound familiar sound of a rooster crowing. She sat up in bed and stretched with a yawn. After pushing her blond hair out of her face she slowly got out up. Walking towards the kitchen she turned on her TV as she went. Grabbing a carton of orange juice out of the fridge she poured herself a glass. She walked back into her main room which doubled as a living and dining room. She sat down at her table and turned her attention to the now working television.

"The weather is looking great for tomorrow, with sun shining bright the whole day with a small chance of clouds" The weather channel reported. The announcer giving the audience his signature smile.

Zelda grinned at the news, drinking the last drop from her glass. She quickly walked outside to begin the day with her morning chores. Zelda owned Hyrule Farm in Stardew valley that she had inherited from her grandfather. She hadn't know her grandfather very well as she grew up in the city and he had to spend most of his time on the farm. He was a very poor man and most could say an even more poor farmer but from she had gathered from the mayor, Zelda could tell that he was a wonderfully kind man who worked hard every day. She wished that she had been able to spend more time with him, other than the few times she had met him as a child, it felt like he was almost a stranger. Even so she was extremely grateful to inherit the large plot of land, even if it was in a bad condition when she arrived. It gave her the chance for a new start and to hopefully put her past behind her.

Through hard work Zelda had greatly improved the farm and transformed it into a very profitable business. She managed to increase the field size and was growing an assortment of different kinds of fruits and vegetables. She had even managed to build a chicken coop which she collected fresh eggs from every day. After watering all her crops and tending to her chickens she checked the time, it was only nine. She decided to walk into town and see what's up, she needed groceries anyway.

The walk between her farm and town was only a five minute journey and Zelda enjoyed the morning stroll. There was a slight summer breeze in the air which was a nice relief from the usual summer heat. She had only lived in the valley for a few months but she was making good friends in the community. The mayor, Lewis was an old friend of her grandfathers and was the first to welcome her into town. Zelda had been meaning to ask Lewis about what her grandfather was like but she never found a good time to bring it up.

Soon in what felt like no time, she was entering the small town. Passing by the doctors clinic she look around at the town square. Not many people were moving about as it was still a bit early. She walked up to the general store and stopped to look at the notice board that hung just outside. She noticed there was a new piece of paper that had been pinned up next to the town calendar.

"I need some fresh spice berries for a new dish I am working on. If anyone finds any could you bring them to me?" She read on the piece of paper. She checked the name signed on it which was written at the bottom. Coraline. Zelda thought about it for a second and came to the decision to help. "Why not?" she said out loud with a smile. It wasn't like she had anything better to do. Noticing the sound of footsteps behind her she turned around to see Shane on his morning walk to work.

"Hey Shane!" She shouted as she ran up to join him. He only rolled his eyes in response. Shane was a tough nut to crack, Zelda had been trying to get him to smile since she met him. The scruffy, black haired young man walked to work every day and would occasionally run into the blond in the morning. Shane kept to himself and most would describe his personality as guarded. Shane acted like her attempts of befriending him was annoying but Zelda knew that she was getting through, even if he would never admit it.

"Need something?" he mumbled continuing to walk.

"What? Can't I say hi to my favorite morning grump?" She said with a small giggle. Zelda could tell Shane was working a little harder to conceal his smirk. "But since you brought it up, I could use some help."

"I don't have time to help you." He responded quickly

"You don't even know what I am going to ask? She said in a playful tone. This caused Shane to raise an eyebrow. "I'm looking for spice berries, I was wondering if you had seen any around?"

"Nah haven't really the had time to look. Should be some uphill." With that he continued to walk to work.

Zelda shouted a thank you as he walked away. Taking his advice she began to walk up hill towards the mountains that overlooked the valley. On her journey she passed by the old community center. The building was old and worn down but instead of looking like some haunted mansion it somehow, as if by magic had a peaceful look to it. She was so distracted by the building she nearly missed Robin.

The local carpenter, Robin was the second person she met and was always willing to give her helpful advice. Robin was also the one who had helped Zelda upgrade her farmhouse and build her chicken coop. She had become almost like an aunt to Zelda which the blonde felt she was very lucky to have. Robin was wearing a plain orange t-shirt and brown pants. Her red hair was done up in its usual ponytail and her bangs fell behind her ears.

"Hey Zelda." Robin said snapping the distracted blonde back to reality.

"Oh! Hey Robin." She greeted with a warm smile. "How's your morning been?"

"Pretty good so far, just on my way to the Forest to get some wood." It was only then that Zelda realised that the older women had an axe in her hand.

Robin often needed to go into the Forest to cut wood when she was running low. Zelda often gave her any extra wood that she collected in hope that she could help her out, even If it was in a small way.

"Cool, I'm trying to find some spice barrie's myself!"

Robin smirked. "Yea I heard that someone had asked for some on the notice board. Classic Zelda always trying to help." She teased laughing a little as she did.

"Well it's not like I had anything planned today anyway." She responded with a smile and a shrug.

"Well I think I saw some behind the house somewhere."

"Thanks for the help."

With that the two parted ways both continuing on their journeys. Zelda soon reached her destination and started to search around for the berries that she needed. Taking her time to enjoy the sights and smell of nature made this a pleasant task. All though she didn't find any berries she did find a few forest critters that gave her a pleasant surprise when she was looking in a few bushes. After a while of fruitless labor, (pun not intended) she decided to ask the one person she knew who had more knowledge of the area then almost anyone. She walked up a path leading to a familiar cliff, near the edge where a small campsite laid. The fire was lit as usual and a scruffy looking man sat near by watching the flames dance around the burning logs.

Linus was one of the more strange residence of Stardew Valley. He was referred to by some as "The Wild Man" a title that Zelda didn't believe gave the man justice. He was a gentle and kind person, but most couldn't see past his unusual life style. She had worked hard to gain his trust since she got here and she was glad that he considered her a friend no. He had so few.

"Morning Linus!" She sang out, smiling brightly.

"Good morning Zelda, nice day isn't it?" He replied happily, looking up from the fire to cast his amber eyes on the blonde.

"It's great, today's breeze is just what we needed" She said looking up at the open blue sky above her "I was wondering if you have seen any spice berries around here?"

"Actually I found a whole load today." He said getting up and walking into his tent, only to return with a large basket filled with the berries. "They are perfectly ripe!"

"No wonder I couldn't find any, looks like you picked the hole Forrest." She joked looking at the huge wicker basket that was overflowing with berries.

Linus laughed sheepishly. "Take as many as you want." He said holding out the basket.

"Thanks I appreciate it! I won't take too many." She said as she took a small pouch out of her pocket to collect the juicy fruits. Eyeing the orange fruit she decided to take eight large juicy Berries. "these should be perfect." She said tying the knot on the brown bag. Shouting her thanks she ran off back into town to complete her "quest" as she called it.


	2. Chapter: 2 (Pierre's General Store)

Zelda entered Pierre's General store and felt the rush of air conditioning hit her face. Piere's store was the town's number one favourite place to get groceries, as well as a few other selected items. All food sold was organic and free ranged, unfortunately if someone need something that wasn't standard they had to go to Piere's competitor. The Jojo corporation had set up one of their many store chains in Stardew Valley as a part of some new initiative to help small towns flourish. However almost everyone new it was just a new ad campaign created by some corporate fat cat in hopes of making the Jojo corporation look better in the eyes of the public.

"Welcome Zelda!" Pierre greeted from behind the counter. He was reading a newspaper

Zelda simple smiled and gave a wave back. Looking around the store she noticed Pierre's daughter Abigail standing by a fruit display. Abigail was one of Zelda's closest friends in Stardew Valley. Abigail had purple dyed hair and blue eyes, she was short and had an even short temper around most. She was a year younger then the blonde but the two never found it Abigail was moody and like to mask herself with a false attitude, behind the goth persona she was actually a very cheery person. She was secretly geeky loving video games, movies and music. It took along time for Zelda to chip away at Abigail's shell and be allowed to see her true personality but when she did Abigail had revealed her secret dream of being an adventure like a character straight out of a comic book.

"Hey Abigail" she said walking up to the purple haired girl with a bright smile.

"Hey Zelda" she replied giving the blond a small smile. "Whatcha up to?"

"Just went hunting for spice berries that your mom needed actually!"

"Oh yea, I almost forgot about that post of her's on the notice board." The smaller girl said frowning slightly. "I was going to get around to doing it, thought it might get my mom of my back a little. Guess I forgot." She sighed shrugging.

"Oh well why don't I give them to you so you!" The blonde said holding out the small brown bag filled with berries.

"Zelda no!" Abigail said pushing the bag away from her. "I can't do that, you worked hard to find those berries you deserve the credit."

"I don't care about credit silly!" Zelda replied as she rolled her eyes with a smile. "Just hand them in and get your mom to owe you one, I don't mind."

"Realy?" Abigail said hesitantly. She felt very guilty for taking credit for something she didn't do on her own. "You're sure?"

"What are best friends for?" The blonde said in a mischievous tone.

Abigail rolled her eyes. Zelda was always trying to get Abigail to admit they were "best friends" which the Abigail found extremely annoying. They both new they were, so why was the blond want her to say it a million times. Zelda new very well that she got embarrassed every time saying it, that was just the way Abigail was.

"Fine. Thank you best friend" She sighed as she took the package, unknown to her though Zelda could see the small hint of a smile she was trying to keep hidden.

Walking away from her friend, Zelda grabbed a small basket and started browsing the aisles of the small store.

After grabbing some more milk, and an assortment of frozen meals the blond furred her brow as she struggled to remember the other things she needed. "I knew I should have written a list." She muttered to herself under her breath.

Deciding that if need be she could always return tomorrow, Zelda walked over to the counter and handed her items over to Pierre who eagerly wrote them up on the cash register.

"How are your crops doing Mrs. Zelda?" Pierre asked eagerly.

"Great! Should be ready to harvest any day now." She replied, nodding her head.

"Well when you need more high quality seeds you know where to find them." Pierre said with his trademark salesman smile. "You know I also have great fertilisers! It will make your farming easier and faster. I'll even drop the price a little since you're my favourite farmer.

Zelda just smiled back politely. She knew that Pierre probably said that to all the farmers he sold to. Pierre was always trying to sell more, Zelda supposed it had a little to do with having such a powerful competitor.

"No thanks" she said gently, waving away the offer with her hands. "Call me silly but I like to let the plants grow in their own time."

"Well if you're sure i can't interest you in anything else then, that will be eighty gold."

Zelda thanked the shopkeeper as she received her groceries, which had been neatly packed into a brown paper bag. Waving good bye to Abigail the blond exited the store and began to head home. The walk seemed to go by quickly as she soon found herself unlocking her front door and stepping into the quiet house. After packing all her groceries into her fridge, Zelda looked at her clock that hung on the wall. She was surprised to see it was nearly two in the afternoon. Grabbing an apple from her counter top she decided to go and take a walk in the woods south of her property.

The area was such a lovely place to walk, Zelda had been trying to get to know the area a bit better when she stumbled upon the woods near her neighbors' homes. Her closest neighbors were Shane's aunt, Marnie who lived with her daughter, and Leah who lived alone in a small cabin near the river. Marnie owned a ranch that housed many farm animals and was the number one place in the area to buy quality livestock. Zelda bought her chickens from Marnie and each one was well kept and fed.

Zelda smiled as she shaded her eyes from the sun. It was an unusually cool day for the summer as there was a gentle breeze in the air. Looking around she decided to take shelter from the sun under a large tree that sat on a tiny hill. The tree was only a few meters away from a small lake that had a wooden dock built in, most likely for fishing. Lying down on the soft grass Zelda gazed up at the blue towards the blue sky, the blonde listened to the peaceful sound of the trees waving in the wind. Every few minutes she would hear the sounds of sweet birds chirping or other forest animals enjoying the day. Soon the blonde couldn't help but let close her eyes and drift off into a peaceful sleep.

Note's From Author:

I hope you have enjoyed what I have written so far. Sorry nothing has really happened yet. I also wanted to say that because of the way my life is I wont be able to update frequently or consistently. I plan on changing to Leah's perspective next chapter so from now on I will be labeling who's perspective the story will be fallowing at the start of the chapter.

Thanks For Reading -Matt Unknown


	3. Chapter: 3 (The Sleeping Beauty)

**Chapter 3**

(The sleeping beauty)

Leah stepped out of her cabin into the warm sunlight and let the cool breeze gently blow against her face. The girl was wearing her trademark suspenders and green t-shirt, her red hair was done in its usual braid that rested over her right shoulder. With sketchpad in hand Leah walked into the forest, heading for the lake she usually went to when she wanted to do some sketching. On arrival though she was surprised to see a blond girl fast asleep under a large tree nearby. Sitting in between the lake and the tree Leah decided to ignore the girl and focus in on her drawing. The Forest was always beautiful and never ceased to amaze those who wondered into it. Leah was sure there were still many hidden secrets still waiting to be discovered by people willing to look for them.

A few minutes passed and Leah couldn't help but look over her shoulder at the blonde girl, who was still sound asleep. Taking a closer look at her Leah noticed that she was wearing a brown buttoned shirt, all buttons were undone revealing a gray t shirt she wore underneath. The blond also had bright blue jeans on and a pair of brown boots. Locks of long blonde hair spilled out onto the grass around her. The Forest also seemed to natural except her as light trickled into through the branches of the trees creating an atmosphere that could be described as almost magical. A butterfly flew around the blond as well, flying around her carefully as if it wanted to take a closer look at the girl too. Leah instinctively flipped to a new page in her sketch book, but she hesitated before putting pencil to paper. She hadn't really asked for the girls permission. Leah bit her bottom lip as she considered continuing.

"Well it's not like the girl said she didn't want me to draw her" Leah said mentally to herself trying to ignore the small amount of guilt that was gnawing at her. However as soon as Leah began drawing she entered her own world and the guilt brushed away.

After a few minuets Leah had finished and she looked back and forth from her sketch pad to the girl comparing the two images. Pleased with her work she smiled, unfortunately the smile was short lived as she looked up to see the blonde girl beginning to stir. Leah panicked and dropped her sketch pad, she was frozen unsure of what to do next. The blonde slowly sat up rubbing her eye as she did. When she opened them they instantly locked onto Leah.

"Oh!" The girl gasped in surprise, A large blush was visible on her face. "I didn't realize anyone was around."

"Sorry" said Leah a little embarrassed. "I didn't want to wake you."

"You're Leah right?" The Blonde asked

"Yea." Leah replied feeling the awkwardness in the air.

"I'm Zelda the new farmer who moved in a few months back." The Blonde said with a small smile.

"Oh right!" Leah said as her memory came back to her. "I think I saw you once in town, talking to abigail."

"Probably." Zelda giggled "Were pretty good friends."

"That's a little surprising, as long as I have know Abigail she always been pretty distant with people."

"Yea she canna with a prickly personality at times but underneath she's not so bad."

"So what made you come out here?" Leah asked

"Just was bored and decided to take a walk in the woods." Zelda's gaze shifted and she looked up at the rich green leaves that hung from the many trees around them. "I love these woods there so peaceful."

Leah just stared at the girl unable to look away. There was something about her that made her almost glow, maybe it was her smile? A smile that seemed almost incapable of disappearing.

"I love these woods too." Leah said "I come out here for inspiration or when I just want to relax."

"Inspiration?"

"I'm an artist. Well trying to be anyway."

"Really that's so cool!" Zelda said

For some reason zelda's reaction made Leah blush and feel embarrassed. Although Leah had no idea why.

"Are these yours?" Zelda asked picking up Leah's sketch book that had been still on the floor.

Snapping back to reality Leah began to internally panic as she remembered that her drawing of Zelda was still in there.

"Wow these are really amazing" Zelda said in awe as she flipped through the pages seeing all of the sketches Leah had drawn. Drawings of trees and landscapes, of lakes and Forest animals, the all looked amazing. "Wait, is this me?" The blonde said as she flipped onto the last page.

"Sorry, I know I didn't ask for your permission." Leah said sheepishly. "I can throw it out if you want."

"No, No!" Zelda said quickly without removing her eyes from drawing. "It's just… wow this is amazing!"

"Really? I mean… you're not upset?" Leah asked hesitantly

"Of course not!" Zelda said smiling brightly. "Do you just draw or do you paint as well?"

"I try to work in all areas. I paint, draw and sculpt."

"Really? That's so cool." Zelda said her eyes widening in awe.

"All my work is in my cabin if you want to take a look." Leah asked shyly, not use to someone really liking her work. Excluding family members of course.

"Yea sure! I would love to" Zelda said as she jumped up onto her feet.

The two walked back to Leah's cabin. As Leah opened the old wooden door Zelda's eyes widened. Zelda looked around the room to see art supplies scattered around the room. Paints, brushes and a few palettes (some dirty and some clean). Canveases leaned against many walls, Zelda could tell that a few were unfinished. Over in the corner there was an unmade bed with green sheets. Near the bed there was a large desk that was covered in pages of drawings. Zelda's eyes also wondered over to a large log that had been granted its own space in the room. A box of carving tools was on the floor nearby and the blonde immediately guessed what the log was for. The Cabin also came with a lovely fire place which Zelda thought must come handy in the winter. She knew she would be using her own as much as she could when the weather started to cool. On the other end of the room there was a small kitchen and table.

"Sorry." Leah said looking sheepish. "I forgot what a mess it is in here."

"I don't think it's a mess." Zelda responded her voice calm and reassuring. "These are beautiful." She said walking up to some of the many paintings.

"Thanks" Leah said shly. "I love my work but I have to admit… it's a not easy to pay the bills when you're an artist."

"Well what if you held an art show in town?" Zelda said spinning on her heel to face the other girl.

"W.w.. What!" Leah stumbled in surprise.

"Yea! It would be great, you would get a ton of exposure and I am sure the town would love to have an event this."

"But… I mean... I don't have anything good enough to show off."

"Are You crazy? You've got a ton of awesome work here already!"

"I mean… It would be a nice event and it could turn artist's attention towards Pelican Town, But I would be crushed if no one liked my work."

Leah looked up at the blonde who was simply giving her a smile. Leah had trouble describing her particular smile. It was a smile that was reassuring, as if in one look Zelda had somehow told her that she believed in her, in a way Leah had always wanted to be believed in. It was strange to Leah that someone she barely new could make her feel this way.

"I'll think about it." Leah said as she began to smile as well.

There was a long pause as the two just stared smiling at each other. It was hard to tell how long they stood there for but it wasn't forced, it felt strangely natural. Zelda finally broke the silence by looking out the window as she noticed the sky starting to turn a shade of pink.

"Well it's getting late, I should head off." Zelda said walking towards the door.

"Thanks for stopping bye." Leah responded, sincerely glad that the blonde had seen her work.

"We should hang out some more." Zelda said looking back as she stopped halfway through the door.

"Yea. Feel free to come by anytime, I'll know doubt see you in the woods again too!" Leah chuckled.

"Thanks! See you around." Zelda said waving goodbye as she left.

As Zelda walked home she couldn't keep her smile off her face, although unlike her usual one this one felt different. Little did she know Leah had the same feeling about her own smile.

-Writers Notes-

 _Sorry I haven't updated this in a really long time, I have been really busy with life and what not. Thanks for the feed back I got. I know its not much but it does mean a lot._


	4. Chapter: 4 (The Old Community Center)

Zelda walked up the path that lead to the large old wooden doors of the abandoned community centre. She was a little excited to explore the old building and finally see the inside of it. Zelda had always been interested in the town centre because of how peaceful the place always looked, It almost seemed magical. So when Zelda bumped into Lewis who said he was going to check up on the old place she immediately asked if she could tag along. The door let out a large squeak as Lewis pushed it open. As Zelda stepped inside her mouth opened slightly in awe. Light trickled in through windows and cracks in the ceiling. Zelda could see dust passing through the light as it shined in. The room main room had a few chairs and one large black sofa, all placed around a large fire place. Some of the chairs had covers thrown over them. The fireplace had a large engraving of stardew valley crest above the mantle. The crest was a simple flower with six stars that circled around it. What really caught her eye though was a small hut that had been woven from branches and leaves that had been placed near the corner of the room.

"What's this?" Lewis said confused noticing the hut as well. "Maybe the kids snuck in here to play. Oh well" he sighed "Glad, the old place is being used for something at least."

Lewis began walking around the room, his eyes filled with nostalgia.

"It's been such a long time since this place was used. Joja corp wants to buy the place so they can tear it down and replace it with one of their warehouses. I've thought about it, the town could sure use the money, but I hate the idea of tearing the place down. Maybe I'm just an old man who's holding on to the past. If one more person signs up for JojaMart premium membership then I will probably give in."

"No don't!" Zelda said encouragingly. "Even if it's not being used it's still an beautiful looking building and an important part of the town's history."

Lewis turned to look at the girl and gave her a warm smile. "Maybe there is hope for your generation." He chuckled.

The two shared a brief laugh but Zelda's attention was diverted quickly when she saw something moving behind Lewis. Zelda squinted trying to make sense of what she was seeing but no matter how long she stared it still looked like a small Apple with arms, legs and a small face. Zelda was about to point it out when it quickly faded away vanishing without leaving a trace. Blinked a few times in astonishment.

"Are you alright Zelda?" Lewis asked turning around to try and find what the blonde had been looking at.

"Uhhh.." was all Zelda could say in response still confused at what she saw. She suddenly let out a yelp a she looked down to see many more small Apple like creatures near her feet. There were a lot more this time and a few had grabbed onto her feet. Lewis spun around to check on the girl when he heard her yelp but the apples had once again vanished without a trace before he could see anything.

"Are you sure you're feeling ok Zelda?" Lewis asked with concern.

"Yea I'm fine… just thought I saw something." Zelda responded, as her body untended it self.

Lewis looked unconvinced and concerned. "Well I will leave the place unlocked case you want to check the place out again."

"Thanks I'm going to stick around and just check things out." Zelda said trying to hide her curiosity.

"Are you sure?"

"Yea, yea" Zelda responded waving her hands " I'll be fine! Don't worry about me."

Lewis looked conflicted about leaving the girl alone but decided to leave the blonde alone probably convincing himself that she would be fine. As Lewis left Zelda looked around frantically hoping to once again see whatever she saw before. Hearing a sound that was similar to a small sweet bell, Zelda's attention was directed towards a hallway. Looking down the hallway she saw another small apple creature. The blonde curiosity outweighed her fear and she bang to slowly walk towards it. However as soon as she got halfway through the hallway the creature waddled through a door to its right. Zelda picked up a little speed hoping not to lose it, but as she entered the room she couldn't find it again. The room was completely empty except for a old book laying open in the center of the room. The blonde picked up to see what was in it but the book was full of symbols that she couldn't read. Zelda spent half an hour looking around the building trying to find the apple creatures once again to no avail. Tired of searching she decided to leave the book where she found it and come back some other day.

After her unsettling experience in the community center Zelda decided to visit Abigail. The two girls relaxed in her room playing video games until zelda decided to ask the shorter girl her opinion on what she saw.

"Ugh!" Abigail shouted in frustration as she her pixelated character died once again.

"Hey I wanted to tell you something..." Zelda said hesitantly. The blonde was still unsure of what she saw and was already second guessing her decision to bring up.

"What?" Abigail asked eyes still locked on her game.

"Lewis let me into the community centre earlier today and I think I saw something."

Abigail didn't react so Zelda continued. "It was hard to tell what it was exactly but it was really small."

"Place probably has a rat problem." Abigail said with a shrug.

Zelda suddenly felt really silly. "Yea you're probably right, I don't know what I was thinking." She said laughing nervously. "It's funny I actually thought I saw one disappear."

"What?" Abigail said finally turning to look at her friend.

"I know, it's crazy. I must have been seeing things."

"Wait! What did it look like" Abigail said excitedly.

"Uuhh… kind of like a small apple." Zelda said worriedly.

Abigail's excitement made Zelda believe she was in for some major teasing, but she was surprised to see Abigail run over and grab a strange board from another end of the room.

"If it disappeared it could be a spirit!" She said placing down the board in front of Zelda. Zelda recognized it as an ouija board.

"What you think I saw a spirit? Don't be crazy! Like you said it was probably a rat or something." Zelda said a little worried.

"No way, It's the perfect set up!" Abigail said with confidence. "That creepy old building is the most likely place in all of stardew valley a spirit would want to haunt."

"I didn't expect you to believe me. I thought you would just think I saw a rat or something!"

"Well normally I would think this is just some prank but I've been reading up on spirits and all the evidence says that stardew valley fits the perfect conditions as a spirit rich environment." Abigail explained.

"This is crazy" Zelda sighed.

"Come on just try and help me communicate with the spirits. What do you have to lose?" Abigail pleaded.

Zelda considered turning her down but it had been a while since the blonde had seen Abigail this excited about anything, so she decided to humor her friend. The two spent the next thirty minutes trying to "communicate" with the spirits, although Zelda could have sworn they were just pushing a triangle around a few letters. Abigail was a little disappointed at the results but said she wasn't ready to give up and that tomorrow they should go back to the community centre together. The blonde agreed and the two said goodbye to each other.

On her way home Zelda couldn't stop herself from feeling disappointed. At first all she wanted was to put what she saw behind her but after Abigail had said it could have been a spirit she couldn't stop thinking about it all. Zelda wasn't really sure they even existed. She had heard stories about ghosts and spirits but she always thought they were just tall tales. She never believed that she would ever see one in her lifetime. She hoped it was a spirit or else Abigail would be really disappointed.

"Uuhhh… I'm too tired to think about this anymore" The blonde sighed as she walked up the steps of her porch.

-Writer's Notes-

Thanks for the awesome reviews guys it really does mean a lot. I wanted Abigail to be apart of the magical and adventurous side of the game cause I thought it was only right. I think its a little strange that someone who is so interested in adventure and magic would know nothing about all the strange things that happen in Stardew Valley. Besides I really like using Abigail cause she's one of my favourite characters in the game :D


	5. Chapter: 5 (The Letter)

Zelda awoke bright and early as usual. In the city she had never been a morning person, so it was still a strange feeling to her even after months of practice. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes she began remembering yesterdays events and the plans she made with Abigail. Jumping out of bed she quickly finished her morning routine and rushed outside to finish her morning chores. After making sure all her crops were watered she was about to head off into town when she noticed her mailbox had a letter sticking out of it. How did the mailman get here before she woke up? and today of all days! Normally she never woke up this early so she could understand how she could have missed him but the sun had just come up a few minutes ago, no way did the mail get here this early.

Zelda was surprised as the letter wasn't like any she had received before. The old brown envelope had a large red wax seal on it. She went inside to open it. Sitting down on her sofa she Carefully tore open the wax seal to find an old parchment tucked inside the letter. The letter looked as if it was written in ink, with delicate and curvy hand writing that danced across the page gracefully. For a minute she thought that perhaps there had been a mistake, but checking the letters address once again she realized that there had been no mistake.

My sources tell me you have been poking around the old community center. Why don't you give me a visit? I live in a old tower that's west of your property, deep in the woods. I may have an answer to your "rat problem".

It wasn't signed which only furthered Zelda's curiosity. She hadn't told anyone what she saw in the community center so how did this stranger know about it? And what did he mean by "their sources"? Was someone spying on her? The blonde became very paranoid and quickly looked around the room as if she expected to see someone watching her. Don't be crazy Zelda told herself this is probably just a prank from Abigail. Although the shorter girl's handwriting wasn't anything like this. Zelda decided to bring it with her so she could show her friend and get her opinion on it.

Realizing she was running late Zelda ran out the door almost tripping over herself as she did. The blonde couldn't help feel embarrassed as she nearly ran into Shane as she went through the town square. Not looking where she was going she tripped once again right into his path.

"Hey careful!" he said as he managed to back step just in time to avoid the Blonde's tumble.

"Ss..sorry" She said blushing as she picked herself up "I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Yea no kidding." Shane scoffed rolling his eyes "Where the hell are you off to in such a hurry anyways?"

"Uh… Just late meeting a friend." She said too embarrassed to say why they were meeting.

Shane just raised an eyebrow but before he could get anymore information out of her the blonde started running off again waving goodbye, leaving shane scratching his head.

Zelda arrived in front of the community centre where Abigail was waiting for her.

"Hey" The purple haired girl greeted. "Why are you so out of breath?"

Zelda didn't really feel like bring up how she nearly tackled Shane so she just ignored her last question.

"Check this letter out, I got it this morning." Zelda said handing the letter to her friend.

Abigail watched her friend's eyes widen as she read her letter.

"How'd they know about what you saw? You tell anyone else?" Abigail asked

"No of course not."

"Then how did…" Abigail trailed off as she finished reading the letter. "Hey I know that tower!"

"You do?"

"Yea I found it one day when I was walking through the woods, it's really cool. I sometimes go there cause I see weird lights coming from the windows." Abigail said her eyes filled with excitement.

"Let's go visit and get some answers then."

"I've always wanted to see what's inside." Abigail said as she grabbed her backpack from of the ground. Even with it closed she could see the handle of a sword poking out from the top.

"You're bringing your sword?" Zelda asked

"Were searching for spirits and are about to enter a strange old tower located deep in the forest… yes I am bringing my sword." She stated smirking.

Zelda didn't really like violence but she felt a little safer knowing her friend was armed. Zelda had seen Abigail practicing and knew that the short haired girl was no amiture with a sword. With abigail leading the way the two walked across town towards the woods having fun discussing different theories about who lived in the strange tower.

"Maybe it's the government doing secret research on spirits and they want our help." Abigail laughed.

"Ya they probably have secret cameras all over stardew valley." Zelda said joining in on her friend's theory.

As the two began to enter the forest Zelda heard a familiar voice.

"Hey Zelda!" The blonde heard from behind her. Turning to see who it was she realized it was Leah.

"Oh! Hi Leah." Zelda said turning to face her neighbour. Abigail was the only one who noticed her friends trademark smile growing a tiny bit bigger.

"Hi Abigail" Leah said to the shorter girl not wanting her to think she was being ignored.

"Hey" Abigail responded

"What are you two doing?" Although the question was for both of them Leah was mainly looking at the blonde.

"Just taking a walk, Abigail said she would show me an old tower." Zelda said gesturing to her shorter companion. "What are you up to?"

"Just the usual" Leah said as she pulled out her sketch book.

"Cool! Maybe later you can show me anything new you've drawn." At this Leah's cheek's began to turn slightly pink.

"Uh… yea… well I might not have anything new that's very good yet." Leah said shyly.

"Are you kidding me? Your art is great!" Zelda said happily.

Abigail patiently waited for the two to finish their conversation and say goodbye. She watched her friend carefully as they continued her journey after words.

"What?" Zelda asked worriedly as she noticed Abigail had been staring at her strangely ever since they said goodbye to Leah.

"What's up with you and Leah?" Abigail asked.

"What do you mean? We're friends"

"Yea but you were acting weird around her… I mean weirder."

"What are you talking about?"

"Come on Zelda, you were really bright and cheery when you saw her."

"I'm always bright and cheery" Zelda said with a smile as if to prove her point.

"No! I mean more than usual." Abigail said waving her arms. "You looked… I don't know… different."

"I don't know what your talking about." Zelda said with a giggle.

"Whatever." Abigail said with a huff. "We're nearly there." The shorter girl pointed to a small gap in the tree's which Zelda could just make out a pointed roof.

The tower was located on top of a large hill with steep cliffs on all sides except for where some large stone steps had been carved. Walking up the steps the girls found themselves in front of the large stone tower. The tower itself looked extremely old and battered, its windows looked as if they had been broken many times and only half heartedly repaired. A large telescope was sticking out of the highest window looking up at the sky. The tower's only entrance appeared to be a large wooden door with a golden handle. Looking up at the tower Zelda became very nervous. The structure alone was intimidating enough, but with how battered it looked it might as well have come straight out of a horror movie.

"You still have your sword right?" Zelda asked trying to keep her nerves in order.

"Yep." Was all abigail could say in response trying to come off braver than she felt.

"Well ok then…" Zelda said forcing herself to knock on the door before she had time to second guess herself.

There was no answer but the two could hear the large door unlock and slowly the door opened on its own with a large creak.

"Yea… cause that's not ominous." Abigail said dryly.


	6. Chapter: 6 (The Wizard)

Zelda and Abigail slowly walked through the old wooden doorway and into the tower. Zelda staying extremely close to her shorter friend. Before either of the two girls could get their bearings of the room the door slam shut so hard behind them that the could practically feel it. The blonde nearly jumped three feet in the air letting out a small squeak of fear. Abigail wanted to comfort her friend but truth be told she wasn't feeling too brave either.

The room was large with strange objects scattered around the place. Zelda's eyes were drawn to a large circle drawn with chalk weaving intricate patterns on the floor, candles had been placed carefully around it. The blonde's imagination started to get the better of her and she started to worry that maybe they had just walked into the home of a satanist. Pictures of her and Abigail being sacrificed started to dance around her head making her knees shake. Zelda had to mentally slap herself back into reality as she turned to see a large cauldron with green liquid in it and a tall bearded man standing over it. The man looked up from the cauldron to take in the sight of the two girls, it was hard to tell what he was thinking as he kept a calm and blank expression. He was wearing a large black cloak and a black cowboy hat, His hair was purple but was a slightly darker shade then Abigail's. There was a long pause of silence in the room only broken by the man.

"Hmmm…." He said almost as if he were sizing the two girls up. "So you're here…"

Zelda began worrying if perhaps she had perhaps missed a specific time that had been stated along with her invitation. She wasn't sure what to say but not wanting to be rude she hesitantly said "Yes." Unfortunately that was all she seemed to be able to say, the rest of her vocabulary was lost to her at that moment leaving her only able to stand there shyly.

"My name is Rasmodius… seeker of arcane truths." He said as he walked slowly towards them.

"Hi, I'm Zelda." She said slowly.

"Yes. I believe you are the one whose arrival I have forcene."

"Um… You sent me an invitation." Zelda replied. She was really confused but looking over at her friend's face she could tell that Abigail wasn't going to be much help. "I hope you don't mind but I brought my friend Abigail." She said gesturing to the girl beside her. Abigail gave a nervous wave.

"Come here I have something to show you." He said gesturing to the candle lit chalk circle.

Zelda and Abigail gingerly walked over to the chalk circle but before either could wonder what it was they were being shown the Rasmodius held his hand out towards the middle of the circle. A sudden flash of light of many colors struck the room. Abigail covered her eyes as Zelda fell over in shock. Picking herself up Zelda looked into the middle of the circle where an image appeared floating in and out of distortion like the blonde was looking through water but clear enough to see what the image was. Zelda's eyes widened as she saw what looked like a small apple that had arms and legs, with two big eyes.

"That's what I saw in the community center." Zelda said looking over at Abigail whose eyes were filled with astonishment.

"Yes." Said Rasmodius looking down at the image. "They call themselves the Junimos… Mysterious spirits these ones these ones…"

"Told they were spirits." Abigail said smugly, bumping shoulders with Zelda.

"You are correct." Said Rasmodius giving Abigail a nod. "I have spent many years studying the paranormal and have had many encounters with otherworldly creatures but for some reason these spirits refuse to speak with me. I don't know why they've moved into the community centre, but you have no reason to fear them"

Rasmodius snapped his fingers and the image disappeared in an instance leaving the girls once again in astonishment.

"So you're a wizard right?" Zelda heard Abigail say from beside her.

"I am a wizard, yes." He responded

"Cool" is all Abigail could say in response, even though she had a million questions she was dying to ask.

Rasmodius chuckled and smiled for the first time which put both girls more at ease. "I must say, you both are taking this quite well."

"I've read magical studies and have always been fascinated with the supernatural, but I've always wanted to meet a real wizard!" Abigail said excitedly.

"I keep a watchful eye over the town and the residence in it. I've seen your eagerness for adventure." Rasmodius eyes turned gentle as he said this.

"Excuse me…" Zelda said nervously. "I was wondering… I found a strange book in the community center. It was written in a language I couldn't read. Is it yours?"

"Hmmm…" Rasmodius said as he stroked his beard. "No it's not mine but it would be interested in seeing it."

Zelda was about to offer that she bring it to him but before she could say anything Rasmodius said he would be right back. Stepping into the circle he snapped clapped his hands together and vanished into thin air. There was a short moment of silence before Zelda let out a large sigh.

"This is really crazy…"

Abigail looked like she was about to respond but before she could the door opened again and Rasmodius stepped through.

"That was quick." Zelda said in surprise. Rasmodius smiled and winked at the girl, forcing a smile onto the blonde's face. Maybe this all wasn't so scary.

"I found the book and a note in the back" He said holding up a note. "It's difficult to translate but it says; _We the Junimo, are happy to aid you. In return, we ask for gifts of the valley. If you are one with the forest then you will see the true nature of this scroll._ " As Rasmodius finished reading off the note he looked at Zelda exitedly. "Interestingly this must mean that the spirits are trying to communicate with you!"

"But why me?" Zelda asked "Why not someone like Abigail?"

"The spirit's work in mysterious ways, but it may have to do with your aura." The Wizard responded

"My aura?"

"Everyone has a magical aura, some more powerful than others." He explained "You happen to have a very powerful and positive aura, this may have led the spirits to accept you. They could also have overheard something you said, or maybe they simply enjoy your company."

"So what do we do now?" Abigail asked.

Rasmodius walked over to his cauldron and poured out into two bowls a green liquid from inside. "This potion is filled with ingredients from the forest, this will help unlock some of your magical potential and give you the ability to read the junimo's language." He said handing a bowl to each girl.

Zelda was having some second thoughts about this. Everything she had ever learnt as a kid was advising her not to drink the strange liquid the man gave her, but looking over at her friend she saw that Abigail was already drinking hers. Oh well, she thought as the blonde gulped down the broth. The taste was awful and zelda had to fight to keep it down. Both girls faces went green and Zelda felt a sudden dizziness over take her. So this is how it ends? Roofied by a wizard she thought. There were worse ways to go.

Rasmodius chuckled at the girls expressions. "Don't worry the side effects should ware of shortly."

Zelda hoped that was true because she was forced on the floor now because of her loss of balance. She felt Abigail fall on top of her and she wondered how silly they both looked. Soon Zelda started to see things as her vision became distorted and trees began to dance in front of her. Images flashed in front of her face; tree's, bushes, rivers and small animals all flew by Zelda's head. She even could have sworn she saw a lock of red hair but it was impossible to be sure. Slowly her vision returned to normal and both girls helped each other up.

"That felt weird." Abigail groaned.

"I will leave you to do what you want with the spirits, but I would appreciate you keeping me update every now and then." Rasmodius said as he escorted the two out. "It gets a little lonely up here sometimes." he admitted sheepishly.

"Thank you for all your help." Zelda said with her bright trademark smile.

"You're very welcome my Dear." The wizard said returning the smile.


	7. Chapter: 7 (Somewhere)

Zelda woke up sleepily to the sound of the morning birds outside. The past few days had really tuckered out the normally energetic blonde. After leaving the wizards tower the two girls went back to the community center to read from the Junimo's book. Abigail was extremely thrilled when they were greeted by many Junimo's who slowly appeared around them. Zelda had found once she got used to the idea of spirits that they were actually quite cute creatures. Looking into the ancient book they were able to read the language as the strange symbols morphed into regular English letters in front of their eyes. The two spent days reading up on what appeared to be a list of items that the spirits presumably wanted. Many were actually fruits and vegetables that Zelda could grow on her farm so they would be relatively easy to get. Others however were hard to find, such as minerals that were found deep in the mine. After a full week of adventure led to the blond wanting to throw herself into bed, wishing nothing more than a long peaceful sleep.

Slowly rising from bed she let out a large yawn. Her morning chores felt very relaxing, today as she harvested many of her crops. It was nice to have something a little more normal in her life again. After finishing up she was about to go inside for a well earned glass of water when she heard someone's footsteps behind her.

"Morning Zelda!" She heard a cheery voice call.

Zelda turned to see that the voice belonged to Marnie.

"Morning Marnie. What's up?" Zelda said happily, waving at her neighbour.

"Well that would be this little guy." Marnie replied gesturing to a small ginger cat that Zelda hadn't noticed till now.

The cat walked up to Zelda letting out a small meow as she looked up at the blonde. The girl couldn't deny that her heart instantly melted at the sight.

"Awwwwn!" She cooed, as she bent down to stroke the small creature. "He's a cutie, what's his name?"

"I don't actually know." Marnie said chuckling at the girl's adorable reaction to the cat. "I found him outside today, No collar or anything. I think the poor things been abandoned by a passerbyer."

"That's awful, why would anybody want to get rid of such a sweetheart." Zelda responded as the cat rubbed against her purring.

"I don't know, but he seems to like this place." Marnie said gesturing to Zelda's property. "He kept leading me back here. I think he's become a bit attached." Marnie smiled as she watched the two. The two seemed to be getting along very well. "Do you want to keep him?"

"Really?" Zelda asked excitedly. She had never had a pet before but she loved animals.

"Why not? He likes you."

"Wow thanks Marnie!" The blonde said smiling brightly.

"He's going to need a name."

The girl thought for a moment before deciding on a name. "How about… Dex." She said proudly. "Short for Dexter." The newly named cat gave a small moew which made the girl giggle. " I think he likes it."

Marnie brought over a few supplies for Zelda's new friend including a food and water bowl, a large supply of cat food and a few cat toys. She also said that when Zelda started running low on food she could buy more at her ranch. After thanking Marnie for everything and making sure Dex was settled she set off, making sure to leave a window open in case Dex wanted to go outside.

Zelda planned on catching up with Leah she hadn't seen her in a while except for in passing. Not wanting to lose such an awesome friend Zelda was determined to spend more time with the artist. She enjoyed the sights as she walked, Stardew valley had began to enter autumn and the tree's were covered in beautiful reds and yellows. This must be a great time of year for Leah, she thought to herself. Walking up to her cabin Zelda felt a small amount of anxiety build up in her chest. Doing her best to ignore it she knocked on the small wooden door. Hearing a voice from inside to come in she opened the door and walked inside.

As she entered she could smell the faint scent of pine wood that came from with in. The place was exactly like Zelda remembered, although the bed had been made and some of the unfinished paintings had been worked on further. The blonde spotted the artist on the other end of the room, She was wearing her usual green top and jeans with thin brown overalls. She had paint on her hands and a little on her face which made Zelda think she had been painting recently. What caught her eye the most though was the fact she was on the phone in mid conversation. Zelda suddenly felt worried that she was intruding, but a small wave and smile from Leah told her she was welcome to come in. Zelda couldn't help but notice the smile disappeared when Leah's attention returned to the phone call.

"For the last time kal, I'm not moving back to the city! Please stop calling here." Leah said angrily into the phone before hanging up. Letting out a tired Sigh she turned back towards Zelda. "Sorry that you had to hear that."

"That's fine, who was that?" Zelda asked hoping her curiosity wasn't coming off as snooping.

"Just my ex boyfriend" Leah responded

Unknown to Leah, the words crushed Zelda like a large boulder. The Blonde felt as if someone had yanked her insides around violently and didn't bother to put them back in place. Deep down Zelda knew why she felt this way but she was scared to admit it.

"We had an apartment together in the city." Leah continued fetching two mugs from her kitchen "I used to work odd jobs in the day and paint at night. Kal kept wanting me to go back to school and get a job with money in it like a doctor. We used to fight about a lot of things and after a while I realized I wasn't really happy with where I was or who I was with, I decided to leave it all behind me and move here." There was a small pause as Leah thought back at her decisions sadly. "I don't know… Do you think I'm being selfish?" She asked.

"No I don't think so." Zelda said trying to be supportive. "You weren't happy, and by the sounds of it Kal wasn't really happy either. You have the right to chase your dreams Leah."

"Yea I guess you're right" Leah sighed "I do love it here. I just hate it when he calls me and tries to make me feel guilty for leaving."

"I don't know him so I can't say for certain but maybe he just needs to move on." Zelda said.

Leah smiled at the blonde "Do you want some coffee?" She asked gesturing to the two mugs she now held in her hands.

"No thanks, I'm not a fan of the taste." Zelda replied. The two took a seat a Leah's table after the artist poured herself a cup.

"You know you give great advice. Do you have your own hung up ex boyfriend?" Leah asked giggling.

"Uh… no, no boyfriends." She responded shyly.

"Realy? None?" Leah said surprised with a laugh, although she regretted her actions immediately when she saw how uncomfortable Zelda had become. "Hey that's ok... You're not the only girl in Stardew valley that hasn't been asked out yet." Leah said hoping to comfort the girl.

"No! It's not that." Zelda said quickly. "It's just that no guy has ever been… my type." She said carefully choosing each word.

"Well I'm sure there's someone out there for you." Leah said smiling softly at the blonde and taking a sip of her coffee.

"Yea... right…" Zelda said trying to fight the large smile that was creeping up her face as she watched Leah. "Somewhere."


	8. Chapter: 8 (The Crush)

"Zelda?... Zelda!" An irritated Abigail shouted, snapping her blonde friend back to reality.

"Hun? Sorry what did you say again?" Zelda said trying to remember what they were talking about.

Abigail just raised an eyebrow in annoyance, this wasn't the first time the blonde had lost concentration recently. The weather had chilled quite a bit so people had started to dawn coats and sweaters. The two were currently hanging out at Zelda's place. Abigail was wearing her standard purple jacket and gray t-shirt. Zelda however, was wearing a cozy red sweater.

"You keep zoning out, and this isn't the first time either." Abigail said with a sigh.

"Sorry, I just have a lot on my mind right now." Zelda said shyly.

"So what's up? Abigail asked as she sat down cross legged on the floor.

Zelda sat down across from her, but didn't look her directly in the eye. Dew to the long period of silence that followed after, Abigail new if she wanted answer she was going to have to try and dig them out of the blonde.

"Did something happen between you and Leah?" Abigail asked studying her friend's face carefully. Abigail was actually quite a good detective when she wanted to be, learning from a few mysteries books. When Abigail noticed a small twitch on Zelda's face that told her that her lucky guess paid off.

"No everything's fine, great in fact…" Zelda mumbled. "Why would you think something's wrong?"

"Well for the past few weeks you've been hanging out with Leah and you've been really down lately." Abigail said "I just want to make sure everything is ok."

"I'm fine Abigail." Zelda replied, although her face said otherwise.

"Listen, you know you can tell me stuff that's bothering you right?" Abigail said trying to be as gentle as possible, she didn't have a lot of experience when it came to comforting people.

Abigail studied the blonde's face carefully and saw that she was clearly fighting some inner turmoil.

"Zelda I'm not going to judge you or hold anything against you. You never judge me for being different."

Zelda turned slowly, worried about how she wanted to tell Abigail about her secret. Images of the purple haired girl telling her that she was disgusting ran through her head. She was terrified of telling anyone, she was scared it would be like last time.

"I… There's… Something you should know about me." Zelda said shakily. Abigail noticed with concern how worried Zelda had become.

"Tell me." Abigail said gently, grabbing the blonde's hand.

"I'm… Gay." Zelda said with a shaky breath.

There was a small pause before Abigail let out a small chuckle.

"Is that it?"

Zelda was surprised to hear Abigail being so relaxed.

"Well… Yea."

"Wait! You thought I would get upset about that? What kind of person do you think I am!" Abigail said a little annoyed. "Why were you so scared to tell me?"

"Look I don't like telling anyone ok!" Zelda said defensively.

"Why? Are you ashamed?" Abigail said worriedly.

"No, it's just... I had a really bad experience in high school when people found out." Zelda said her head hanging low. "Somehow word spread throughout school and no one ever looked at me the same. I got pushed around and bullied like you wouldn't believe."

"Was it really that bad?" Abigail asked in shock.

"It sucked, for four years I was tormented and teased. I was shoved into my locker more times than I can count."

"Really? Man if I had been there, I would've knocked their heads together. Didn't the teachers do anything?"

"No. I went to a pretty poor local school, most teachers were either underpaid or didn't care. Bullies were just something I had to learn to deal with."

"Well you shouldn't have had to deal with that crap. Man I hate bullies. Zelda you should know that although this town is pretty old fashioned sometimes, everyone is surprisingly progressive about people being gay. No one here will think differently about you, I promise." Abigail said putting her hands on Zelda's shoulders. "Besides everyone from your high school is an idiot."

"Thanks Abigail." Zelda said finally letting out a small smile."Sorry I didn't tell you sooner."

"I get why you didn't. With what you went through it must be hard to trust people. Just know that you can trust me."

The two girl's attention were briefly diverted when Dex decided to come over and join the girls, climbing into Zelda's lap and beginning to pur. It was almost like the ginger cat wanted to try and comfort the blonde as well.

"So what does this have to do with Leah?" Abigail asked still curious to why the blonde had been a little down the past few weeks. However before Zelda had the chance to answer Abigail had already put two and two together. "You have a crush on her!" She shouted pointing straight at the blonde.

"What? No!" Zelda said as a large blush appeared on her face."

"Yes you do! Look your whole face is going red." Abigail responded laughing.

"Cut it out!" The blonde said swatting her away and trying not to look too embarrassed."

"It all makes sense now. That's why you act so weird when you're around her."

"I don't act weird around her" Zelda said pouting.

"How long have you had a crush on her."

"I don't know." Zelda said blushing even harder now. "I've always thought she was really pretty… but the last few weeks…"

"Why don't you ask her out?"

"What? No way!." Zelda cried out.

"Why not?" Abigail said as if it were the obvious solution.

"She doesn't like me that way! Besides she has an ex boyfriend."

"Emphasis on ex"

"Still a boy! Which means I don't have a shot."

"Is this what's been getting you down lately?" Abigail asked.

"I don't know, it's just hard. I really like Leah, it just sometimes hurts to know she won't like me back."

"I don't know Zel, I mean she was looking at you in a funny way. Who knows? Maybe you do."

"Can we stop talking about me and Leah now? Let's just watch a movie or something." Although Zelda was largely embarrassed, it was nice to finally have someone to talk to about her love life.

"Fine. I guess I got enough out of you today, but we will be talking about this again."

"Great." Zelda said sarcastically.


	9. Chapter 9 (The Saloon)

The saloon's warmth greeted the blonde as she stepped inside, escaping the cold from outside. The door to the saloon always seemed like a portal to another world, the light from within drowning out the dark as she opened the door. It's fun and lively atmosphere being in complete contrast to the quite and calm outside world. The first thing that always hit Zelda first was the music. The Music always filled the room with energy, the blonde never could understand how such a small jukebox could produce as much sound as it did.

Looking around the room she noticed that a lot of the town had already shown up. It was almost a tradition for the town to come together on a Friday night and celebrate a well earned weekend. Gus was manning the bar as usual, with Emily working behind him. Pam was in her usual spot at the bar, stirring her scotch with one hand and staring off into space. Lewis was at a one of the standing tables with a drink in his hand. Robin and Demetrius were dancing to the music, Zelda thought it was sweet that they both still made time for each other even though both were usually busy with work. As Zelda walked up to the bar she could also see Shane leaning against the wall drinking from a beer, sulking as usual. Giving Shane a smile and a small wave she turned her attention to Gus who had come to take the blonde's order.

"Evening Zelda." He said greeting her as she sat down on one of the bar stools.

"Hi Gus." She replied happily.

"Can I get ya a beer?" Gus asked.

"No beer thanks, just a soda." She said with a smile. Zelda didn't like to drink and at most would only accept a glass of wine if it were a special occasion. Whenever someone asked why, she never gave them a direct answer. The truth was something she wanted to keep buried.

Gus handed Zelda her usual cherry soda which, in Zelda's opinion was a lot better than the slush in Joja-Cola. As she looked around the room again she met eyes with Lewis and decided she would go over and say hi.

"It's good to see you taking a break from work." He said with a smile. "Your grandfather always worked too hard." Lewis' smile faded slowly as he remembered.

"I've been wanting to ask you, what was he like?" The blonde asked.

"Hmm?" Lewis was surprised by the question.

"It's just… I didn't really get to know him. He only came to visit a few times in my life… I know he worked really hard to send money to me when I needed it. I just wish I could've spent some time with him."

"He was a very kind and gentle man." He started "He came here when he was around thirty, moved in with his wife. I was doing odd jobs for a living around that time, this was years before I decided to become mayor." He explained "In fact back then, if someone told me I'd be mayor I would have broken a rib laughing. I first met him when he hired me to fix the door to his shack. Poor fool didn't know a screwdriver from a hammer!" He laughed. "I helped him out and overtime we became the best of friends. In a few years your mother was born and although they didn't have much, i've never seen such a happy and loving family."

Lewis paused as he watched a faint smile appear on Zelda's face, with one hand the blonde gently touched a small necklace she was wearing. The necklace was of three golden triangles combined together with a small blue Sapphire in the empty space in the middle. Zelda wore it as much as she could as it had belonged to her mother and was one of the few items she had left to remember her by.

"Before that was your mother's it belonged to your grandmother." Lewis said pointing to the girls necklace. "I remember the day he gave it to her. He made it for their anniversary, took him three weeks."

"It's the family's symbol." Zelda said "Each triangle represents something different. Wisdom, courage and power." She listed pointing to each one.

"Your grandmother gave it to your mother when she moved to the city." Lewis explained "I've always admired your family's symbol, it's such a lovely sentiment."

"Thanks Lewis." She said thanking him for the talk.

"Anytime, I'll have another drink in his honour tonight." Lewis said with a grin as he raised his glass.

Zelda looked around again and saw that Leah was at a standing table with the local writer, Eliot. Her hair was in her standard braid that fell across her shoulder. It looked like she had washed up a little for the evening because there was no trace of paint on her hands. The two seemed to be having a great time chatting to each other. Not wanting to interrupt, the blonde went to the other side of the room and found Abigail, Sam and Sebastian hanging out around the pool table. Abigail was sitting on the couch watching the two boys play.

"Dude, how did you miss that?" Sebastian laughed as he watched Sam fail once again.

"Whatever man. Oh hey Zelda." Sam greeted as the he noticed the blonde.

Sebastian also gave a small wave as Zelda sat down next to Abigail at the couch.

"Who's winning" She asked the group.

"Same as always" Abigail said smirking.

"Shut up." Sam responded quickly as he leaned over the table and lined up another shot.

The group laughed as Sam failed again at putting a ball in one of the holes. As the boys continued to play Abigail began to talk to Zelda, the music helping to make their chat more private.

"So Willy has been helping me fish, and I was able to catch some of the fish that we needed for the offerings." Abigail said making sure Zelda was the only one who could hear her.

"That's great, I've been growing some of those fall crops we need. You should come over tomorrow and help me carry some."

"Sure thing. We should visit Rasmodius again, it's been a while. I also want to ask him if he could put in a good a word for me at the adventurer's guild."

"You still thinking about going down in the mines?"

"Absolutely! I've wanted to explore the mines since I was a kid. I'm ready." Abigail said confidently.

"Just be careful, Lewis told me there are some pretty nasty things down there." Zelda said worry written across her face,

"I'll be fine Zelda, I'm not afraid." Abigail responded defensively.

"I'm not saying you are. Just promise me you won't do anything stupid." The blonde said gently putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Yea ok. I promise." Abigail responded relaxing a bit.

The blonde gave her friend a supportive smile before turning her attention to the two boys who were calling the girls over.

"Hey Zelda you want to play?" Sam said waving the blonde over.

"Sure! But… uh...I don't really know how." She said scratching the back of her head.

"It's easy I'll teach you." Sam said handing her a pool cue.

"I don't know if you'd be the best teacher." Sebastian said smirking.

"Shut up!" Sam said with a glare before turning back to instruct Zelda.

Warping himself around her from behind he helped her find the proper hand positions and showed her how she should take a shot.

"In theory it's simple put the balls into the holes." He said as he watched her line up her first shot.

"Right." she said.

The group watched as Zelda took her time. Sizing up the shot and trying to figure out how much power she would need. Zelda's tongue stuck out slightly from the side of her mouth as she concentrated. Finally ready she took her shot sending the cue ball smashing into her desired target, the ball was sent down the table and just barely made it into one of the many holes.

"Good job." Sebastian Said smiling in approval. "You're already better than Sam."

The group shared a set of laughter as Sam pretended to hang his head low in shame.

"What?" Leah asked defensively as she watched Elliot nearly chuckle.

"It's just… I've been telling you since we met that you should have an art show in town and you've always said no. When Zelda says so, you suddenly decide to have one?" Elliott said still chuckling.

"I still think it might be a mistake so you better shut it before I change my mind." Leah responded in a huff

"What's she like?"

"What?"

"Zelda. I don't know her very well but she must be special for you to decide to come out of your shell." Elliott said.

Leah new the question was relatively simple but for some reason she found it hard to come up with an accurate answer.

"She's… different." Leah said looking across the room at the blonde who was sitting on the sofa next to Abigail. "She's sweet and kind and just different from anyone I know. She's always smiling and brings this energy wherever she goes. It's… hard to describe."

"Sounds perfect!" Elliott said.

"Hun? What do you mean?"

"Sometimes the best subjects are the hardest to describe, try putting what you feel with Zelda into your work." Elliot explained. "I know you still haven't done anything with that log of wood yet. Now you have some inspiration."

It wasn't the worst idea she had ever heard, and she had been looking for inspiration recently. Maybe she would give it a try.

"When do you think you'll have your art show?" Elliot asked

"Probably sometime in the spring, that way I have all winter to prepare."

The conversation slowly changed as Elliott started ranting about his novel and his "struggles" as a writer. Leah tried to pay attention but slowly found her thoughts drifting off. Leah couldn't help but keep glancing over at her blonde neighbour from across the room. Watching her laugh with her friends. It was a sweet sight. Zelda was her neighbour, friend and one of the nicest people she had ever met. So why did Leah feel so confused when she thought of her. How do I feel about Zelda… the question was so straightforward, so why was the answer so complicated? As she watched the blonde Elliott's words bounced around her head.

"She must be special." Leah whispered to herself.


	10. Chapter: 10 The Gift

Zelda walked outside stretching with a large yawn as she did so. When she opened her eyes she was surprised (and a little embarrassed) to see Leah standing outside next to a large wooden sculpture. Zelda noticed that Leah seemed a little nervous which made Zelda wonder if she looked like a total mess, as she had practically rolled out of bed a few minutes prior. Scenarios started racing through her head and the idea that she had forgotten to put on pants this morning crossed her mind more than twice. Glancing down at herself for a moment quickly she was relieved that she was indeed wearing pants. Not wanting to be rude, Zelda pushed down any nervousness she was feeling and spoke first.

"Hey!" She said, hoping that she looked normal.

"Hi." Leah said quickly. "I came by to tell you that I'm going to take your advice and I'm going to have an art show in town."

"Really? That's great!" Zelda said happily, forgetting about any awkwardness that had been hanging in the air. "When's it going to be?" She asked excitedly.

"Sometime next spring." Leah responded. "That way I have plenty of time to prepare."

"That's great Leah. I can't wait to see it!" Zelda said bouncing down her porch stairs giddily.

"Thanks, I would never have decided to do something like this without you so…" Leah raised her hand nervously and pointed at the large wooden sculpture next to her. "I m...made you something. It's called how I feel about Zelda." She said blushing.

It was Zelda's turn to go bright red as she took more notice at the large wooden sculpture next the artist.

"Really? This is for me?" She said slowly walking up to the sculpture. It was a large line that twisted around itself, wrapping up into a tight knot. It was extremely impressive that Leah had carved this from a single log considering its many twists and turns.

"I hope you like it." Leah said shyly waiting for a response nervously.

"Leah this is... Beautiful." Zelda said in awe.

Suddenly Zelda wrapped Leah in a large hug. Leah was shocked and felt her heart beat raise slightly, she had a feeling her face was as red as a tomato. The artist was surprised at how much she enjoyed the blonde girls embrace.

"No one has ever done anything like this for me." Zelda said still holding Leah tightly. "Thank you."

Leah wasn't sure what to say so she just returned the hug, squeezing her friend tight. There was a long pause before Zelda finally pulled away. Leah noticed the blonde wiping away a few tears a she did.

"Zelda, are you crying?" Leah asked concerned.

"Sorry." The blonde said feeling a bit stupid. "It's just… I didn't really have any friends before I moved here and… No one's ever given me a gift as special as this."

"Well you've been so encouraging and sweet to me, I just wanted to somehow give you something back in return." Leah said with a smile.

"You should come inside and have a drink!" The blonde said with a smile as she began to pick up the sculpture carefully.

"I loved to, let me help you with that." Leah said as she tried to help carry the gift inside.

She knew from carrying it over that it was pretty heavy. The artist had to take a few breaks along the way as she brought it over. Leah was surprised however to find that the blonde managed to pick it up all on her own. Wow she's stronger than she looks Leah thought. Zelda placed the sculpture towards the side of the room and stated that she would find a better place for it later. Moving to the kitchen she grabbed two glasses from the cupboard.

"I'm afraid I don't have any coffee… but I have water, milk, orange juice, or soda." Zelda listed, hoping she would have something Leah would like.

"Water will be fine." Leah said taking a look around the room.

As Zelda poured two glasses of water Leah sat down on the couch, only to be surprised when a ginger cat jumped into her lap seemingly out of nowhere.

"Whoa! Hey there little guy where did you come from." Leah said stroking the cat behind the ear.

"Oh yea, you guys haven't met yet." Zelda said walking over to the living room and placing the glasses on the coffee table. "Leah meet Dex. Dex, Leah." She said gesturing between the two.

Dex looked up at Leah and mowed as if to say hello, causing the artist to giggle.

"Hello Dex." She chuckled as she shook the cat's paw comically. Dex mowed once more before curling up in the artists lap purring gently.

"He likes you." Zelda said happily.

"How long have you had him?" Leah asked stroking him gently.

"Not long, I got him around the beginning of fall. Marnie brought him over, apparently the poor guys was abandoned. She saw that we got along so she wanted me to keep him."

"That's really nice of you." Leah said. "I can't believe someone would just abandon a pet like that."

"Yea well I kinda know a bit about being a stray so I understand a little how Dex must have felt."

"What do you mean?" Leah asked.

Zelda suddenly realised what she had said but it was too late to go back on it, she was going to have to talk about it.

"My mom died when I was eight..." Zelda explained slowly, touching her necklace as she spoke. "And my dad…" There was a slight hesitation, as if she was trying to find the right words to say. "Left… when I was twelve. I was in an orphanage till I was old enough to get a job and move out."

"Zelda…" Leah said taken back at what the blonde had just told her. "Thats horrible…"

"Yea… It sucks, but I try and not think about it too much. I try to look towards the future and at everything I have now." Zelda said looking up at Leah with a tiny smile.

Leah was amazed at the blonde. She couldn't understand how someone who had been through so much could still be smiling and have such a positive outlook on life, yet here she was sitting next to her. Leah only had one thought going through her head at that moment, Zelda sure is one of a kind.

"Are you going to go to the Fair this Tuesday?" Zelda asked hoping to change the subject to something more positive.

"Yea I am, are you going to enter in the showcase competition?" Leah asked

"Yea and I was wondering if you could help me." Zelda said smiling brightly.

The Stardew Valley Fair was an event that was thrown once a year and was easily the town's biggest festival. It brought in a lot of tourists from neighbouring towns so Lewis all ways went all out getting as many attractions as the town could afford. As away of showing the best of what Stardew Valley had to offer, the town held a showcase where residents could create a display that would present all of what they had. The mayor would then judge the displays and decided an overall winner. Lewis had informed Zelda about the fair a long time in advance so that she could get ready.

"I've prepared my display for Tuesday but I could use some help carrying it all over." Zelda explained. "I asked Abigail but apparently her dad doesn't want her helping his competition."

"Pierce always takes this festival a little too seriously." Leah laughed. "I'd be happy to help."

"Thanks I really appreciate it."

"Of course! It will be nice to go with someone for a change."

Zelda strolled happily along the forest path humming a small tune. She was in a very good mood today thanks to Leah's visit. The two had a great time talking for what felt like ages about seemingly nothing. Seeing Abigail sitting on a log Zelda walked up to her. The two had decided to visit Rasmodius again in the afternoon and had planned to meet in the forest before heading off towards the tower.

"Hey, you're late." Abigail grumbled.

"Sorry." Zelda said. "I lost track of time."

"What, were you playing with Dex again?" Abigail said rolling her eyes.

"No Leah showed up at my place with a gift."

Abigails mood suddenly changed from board to amused. "Oooooh I see."

"What's that's supposed to mean?"

"She brought a gift? Do tell." Abigail said.

Blushing Zelda explained Leah's visit and the nature of her gift.

"She made you a sculpture?" Abigail asked laughing. "No wonder you asked her out on a date."

"It's not a date!" Zelda cried. "She's just helping me with setting up my display, and then were just hanging out afterwards. I told you she doesn't like me that way."

"The sculpture is called 'how I feel about Zelda', cleary she likes you." Abigail said teasingly. "You should just make a move already."

"I could say the samething about you and Sebastian, you know." Zelda said, making Abigail turn pink.

"What! What are you talking about?"

"You think I can't see how you're always looking at him? You practically have hearts in your eyes."

"Shut up! I do not. Your so wrong about this." Abigail grumlbed.

"Don't be embarrassed, Sebastian's quite the catch!" Zelda continued. "He's cool and mysterious, and I'm sure it would be very romantic taking a ride on his motorcycle. I can see it now! Just you and him on the open road, the wind blowing through your hair as you hold tightly on to him."

"Zelda I'm warning you." Abigail said trying to act threatening even though her face was as red as a tomato.

"Not so much fun when you're on the other end is it?" Zelda said smirking.


	11. Chapter: 11 The Ring Of Yoba

The two girls walked up to the old tower, excitement building up inside them. The last time they had come they got to see the wizard perform some of his magic as he worked, it was exciting to know that once they walked through the large wooden door anything could happen. Zelda knocked on the door twice and in a few moments the door opened by itself granting them entry. Walking in it didn't tow long for the door to slam behind them causing them both to jump.

"Sorry about the door." They heard Rasmodius call. The watched as he appeared from within his library, book in hand. "There's an annoying draft in here that keeps slamming the door."

"Oh... that explains it." Abigail said scratching the back of her head.

"How are you doing Rasmodius?" Zelda asked cheerfully.

"Very well Zelda, thank you for asking." The wizard responded happily.

"We thought we'd come pay you a visit, and tell you how the Junimo are doing." Abigail said walking over to a large armchair and sitting down in it.

The two had visited Rasmodius a few times before and had realised over time that he wasn't as scary as he appeared to be, in truth he was quite relaxed and let the girls make them self at home anytime they wanted.

"Ah yes how are our mysterious friends doing?" Rasmodius asked, as he continued with his work.

"Well we've been giving them some of the things they asked for and they seem pretty happy with us." Zelda reported. "We also think they've been slowly cleaning the building."

"Really?" The wizard responded, looking up from his book for a second intrigued.

"We noticed the places has been looking less dusty recently." Zelda explained.

"Perhaps that could be simple because you two have been using the building more often."

"That's what we thought at first too but we noticed that some of the old books had been organised and a shelf had been completely rebuilt." Abigail said in response.

"Interesting, I think it's one of their ways of saying thank you." Rasmodius said as he walked across the room to a shelf, carefully collecting an assortment of strange ingredients before walking over to his large cauldron.

"They do like to give us little gifts." Zelda said. "They gave me a few special seeds to grow and they gave Abigail a fancy lure for fishing."

"Oh! Speaking of gifts." Rasmodius said putting down what he was carrying and quickly walking over to a chest. The wizard rummaged through the chest for a few seconds before he found what he was looking for. "I found out it was your birthday a week ago." He said walking over to Abigail. "Here." He said handing the purple haired girl a small ring.

The ring was gold in color with a small golden gem in the center, around the gem were tiny intricate patterns that were written in a strange language. Abigail stared curiously at the ring her hands, taking in all the subtle details.

"It's called a ring of Yoba" Rasmodius explained. "They are extremely rare and are very powerful magical charms. It will protect you when you need it."

Zelda recognized the name. Yoba was supposed to be the god of Family and Care. Very religious people often pray to Yoba for good fortune and protection for their friends and family.

"Thank you Rasmodius. You didn't have to get me anything." Abigail said a little surprised that the wizard would give her such an important gift.

"Think nothing of it my dear." He said with a smile. "I understand that you want to be an adventurer, this will certainly help you."

"This is awesome! How does it work?" Abigail asked jumping out of her chair.

"It will activate on its own, when you need it the most."

"Oh I see… Quick Zelda hit me!" Abigail said running over to her friend.

"What! Don't be an idiot Abigail I'm not going to hit you." Zelda laughed rolling her eyes.

"Just do it. Hit me!" Abigail giggled grabbing Zelda's hand and trying to force the girl to slap her.

"No! Quit it!" The blonde argued trying to wrestle herself away from her friend.

The wizard just laughed as he watched the two friends fight, Zelda was able to slip out of Abigail's grasp but the purple haired girl chased her around the room. The battle only ended with both girls out of breath, finally calling a truce and taking a seat. As Zelda caught her breath she looked up to see Rasmodius had gone back to his cauldron, mixing some of his ingredients into the strange broth.

"What are you working on?" Zelda asked curiously as she watched the liquid slowly turn different colours.

"An old friend of mine wanted some help with an infestation problem they have, I'm making a repellent that will hopefully solve their problem." Rasmodius explained. "However he wasn't sure what kind of creature it was and was only able to send a small vile of its blood. I'll have to run a few tests to see what it's greatest weakness is."

"You can find a creature's weakness just with a sample of its blood?" Zelda asked intrigued.

"Not exactly, but this way I'll be able to make more of an educated guess." The wizard said as he wrote down a few results on a piece of parchment.

"Magic sounds a lot like science, the way you test and research things."

"They are more similar than most people think. Just as it's possible for anyone to create a chemical reaction as long as they have the right formula, anyone could use a spell if they had the right instructions."

"So even I could cast a spell?"

"In theory, yes. Although I believe it would be much easier for you then it would Abigail as your magical aura is stronger than the average person."

"You said that I had a strong aura before but I didn't even know magic existed till I met you."

"Aura is something you're born with. Like a mussel it is possible to strengthen it over time, however some are just naturally gifted with powerful aura."

"I don't feel very… magical." Zelda said looking at her hands.

"If you'd like, in the future I could teach you a few spells."

"Really! That would be so cool." Zelda said excitedly.

"What? Are you going to grow super fruit to win next year's showcase?" Abigail teased.

"Are you going to the fair, Rasmodius? Zelda asked ignoring her friend.

"Yes I plan on meeting my old friend there, she comes once a year. She runs the fortune teller's booth, she's quite gifted actually."

"Fortune telling is real?" Abigail said surprised. "I thought it was all smoke and mirrors performed by con artists."

"Divination is real, however most fortune tellers are con artist." The wizard explained. "The ability to read signs and predict the future is an extremely difficult and rare ability. I my self can only see vague visions of the future, which aren't very helpful. However time isn't a set course and is constantly changing. Often when what one see's may not come to be."

"Are you going to get your fortune read, Zelda?" Abigail asked turning to her friend.

"No way." Zelda said shaking her head. "Knowing too much about your own future is a bad thing, the fun in life is not knowing what comes next."

"Wisely said." Rasmodius said smiling.

Not wanting to keep the wizard from his work the two girls said their goodbyes and started their journey back towards town. Abigail studied her new ring, captivated by it in wonder.

"The adventurer's guild will have to let me now that I have this!" Abigail said smugly.

"Don't get too cocky." Zelda said rolling her eyes "You don't know how that thing works."

"Yea, wish Ras had pack some kind of instruction manual with it." Abigail shrugged. "I'll probably test it out later."

Zelda stopped and turned around and grabbed Abigail firmly. "Now listen here." She said in a stern voice that reminded the shorter girl of her mother. "I don't want to hear that you've picked a fight with Alex's dog or thrown yourself off a cliff or done something else stupid. Rasmodius said that ring will only work when you need it too, meaning it probably won't stop you from hurting yourself. Don't depend on it, use it only as a last resort, otherwise you're gonna find yourself in a world of trouble. You understand?"

Abigail was surprised at how scary the blonde was when she wanted to be, if she had Zelda as a mother, she'd never get away with anything.

"Uh… yea ok." Abigail said timidly, abandoning all her plans to test out her gift.

"Good." Zelda said returning to her bright and cheery self before turning around and continuing on her journey. Leaving Abigail standing star struck at what had just happened.


	12. Chapter: 12 (The Fair)

Zelda walked into the bustling town square carrying her basket full vegetables. She was amazed at how different the town looked, small tents had been placed around the town square holding an assortment of carnival games. Banners had been strung up across the square, high above everyone's head. Zelda had never seen so many people in town before, somehow it made the town feel smaller in comparison. At that moment the blonde really wanted to run off and explore the fair but she new she had to set up her display first. Looking around Zelda noticed that most of the display stands were set up in front of Pierre's store, she could see an empty one with Hyrule written on the outside. Zelda checked behind her to make sure her friend was still there, and to her delight Leah was. The two carried their baskets over to Zelda's stand and began arranging the various fruits and vegetables that they had brought. Leah had actually been surprised at the variety of items the blonde had gathered, she had even gone foraging and found some lovely wild berries.

"These look great, Zelda." Leah said as she placed a large cabbage onto the display. She could tell that Zelda had certainly saved her best crops for the occasion.

"Thanks, I worked really hard on these. I even asked Linus for his secret foraging spots." Zela said smiling.

"Ah Mrs. Zelda!" The two heard a familiar voice call. "I was wondering when you'd arrive."

It was Pierre who was now standing in front of his display, which the two realised was next to Zelda's. Taking in Pierre's stand for the first time the blonde suddenly became very nervous. Pierres display was impressive to say the least. A large stack of Perrier finest products towered perfectly on display. It looked like a offering one would present to a king instead of a fair.

"Do you like it?" Pierre said a little smugly, noticing Zelda's eyes widening in shock. "I only use the finest, for my display. I see this as an opportunity to show that my store delivers the highest quality of products in the entire valley."

"You've done very well Pierre." Zelda said trying not to sound defeated.

"Well yours is very… cute." Pierre said with a patronising smile.

Zelda just smiled back trying not to let him get to her.

"I don't know Pierre, I think Zelda's gonna give you a run for your money." Leah said placing a supportive hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Yes, perhaps." Pierre laughed before walking off.

"Wow I can't believe Pierre is such a jerk." Leah said in a huff, her smile fading the moment Pierre had turned around. Maybe it was the way Pierre was acting but she was surprised at how defensive she felt about Zelda. It took a huge amount of self control not to act aggressive towards the store owner, which was odd because normally Leah thought of herself as a very calm person.

"Abigail warned me that he gets kinda nasty around this time of year, apparently it's gotten worse since JoJa Mart moved in." Zelda explained sadly. "He just gets very… competitive when it comes to this contest."

"Your display is great Zelda, don't listen to him." Leah said. "He's just trying to get in your head, I'm sure you're not the only one here he's trying to put down."

"Thanks Leah." Zelda smiled. "Having you here, was a big help."

"Of course! Now the judging won't start until a few hours so let's go have some fun."

"Okay." Zelda said cheering up completely.

Leah led Zelda by the hand through the large crowd towards the closest game. Outside the tent there was a large target which made Zelda assume that it would be some kind of shooting mini game. At the entrance to the tent was a tall woman with pigtails, her striped shirt told the girls that she must have been the supervisor. Before the girls could reach the tent two young kids stepped out laughing and then ran off to find another game.

"What are the rules?" Leah asked the carnie as the two walked up to the tent.

"Simple." The woman replied. "You get twenty shots, hit as many targets as you can."

"Do you want to try?" Leah asked the blonde.

"Yea! Let's do it."

The woman handed Zelda a large sling shot and a bag of ammo before letting the two girls enter. Inside the tent there was a large cardboard scenery set up with targets scattered around, a few moved mechanically from side to side to add an extra layer of difficulty. A small screen displayed the user's current score letting them know the amount of points they had earned.

"Alright I'll go first, we can take ten shots each." Zelda said positioning herself in the middle.

"I bet I can hit more than you." Leah said smugly.

"Oh yea! Will see about that." Zelda said as she lined up her first shot.

Zelda took a deep breath before steadying her arm and firing her first shot. It missed.

"Dam, hold on." Zelda said as she took her second.

This time she actually hit the target adding ten points to the score board.

"Yes!" Zelda cheered.

The blonde continued her turn and took the rest of her shots finishing with the final score of 6/10 targets hit.

"Just call me eagle eye!." Zelda said as she pretended to aim a imaginary sling shot at Leah.

"Alright Eagle eye." Leah said laughing. "Not bad. Since you're so confident in skills how about we make our bet more interesting?"

"How?"

"Loser has to buy lunch."

"Your on! No ordinary human can match Eagle eye's accuracy." Zelda said striking a superhero pose.

"We'll see." Leah said as she took aim.

Leah released her first shot sending the small pellet flying through the air smashing directly into the center of a target, leaving poor Zelda star struck. Leah continued taking eight more shots each one hitting their target in near perfection.

"What was that!" Zelda said in disbelief.

"I used to play video games with my little brother." Leah explained with a shrug. "The twerp wouldn't shut up about beating me so I practiced a lot until my aim got better."

"That's not fair! You can't just hide the fact that you're some sling shot prodigy." Zelda said waving her arms.

"All's fair in the game of war." Leah teased as she lined up her last shot. "Now if you excuse me, I think I'll make my score flawless."

Little did Leah realise that Zelda had dawned a cheeky smile. Right before Leah fired her final shot Zelda poked the artist in the ribcage. Leah squealed and retracted but it was too late she had already fired her shot, sending the pellet too far to the right.

"Hey that's not fair!" Leah giggled as she tried to tickle Zelda back in revenge.

"All's fair in the game of war." Zelda said through laughter as she unsuccessfully fought of the artist's attack.

The two girls collected the tickets they earned and moved on through the fair. Zelda pointed out a large strength tester. A large muscular man with a moustache was standing next to it flexing his arms. Moving closer the girls noticed Alex was currently trying out the game for himself. Alex was Stardew Valley's resident jock, always pushing himself to try and be better. Alex lived with his grandparents and dreamed about becoming a pro football player someday in the future, the girls weren't surprised to find him at the most manly game at the fair.

"Hu!" Alex huffed as he slammed the hammer onto the small stone platform sending the small ball shooting up the device until it hit the bell at the very top, letting out a loud clang as it made contact.

"Good job, you are true manly man." The burly moustached carnie said to Alex flexing his muscles as he spoke.

Leah had to cover her mouth to try and muffle her laugh as she watched Zelda mock the carnie by mimicking his pose from behind. Quickly correcting herself as the strong man turned around, the two watched as the man checked them up and down.

"Wish to test yourself, little girl?" The man said with a hearty laugh.

"Ok sounds like fun!" Zelda said running up to the machine.

"You're going to try, Zelda?" Alex said surprised as he noticed the blonde stepped up.

"Why not?" Zelda said picking up the large hammer from of the ground.

"Careful." Alex said helping Zelda steady herself as she swung the large hammer over her shoulder, nearly losing her balance in the process.

"Thanks" she smiled at him.

Zelda planted her feet and with a huff slammed it as hard as she could onto the stone platform. The strong man and jock were both surprised as the ball moved a little more than halfway up the device. Leah laughed at the two's reaction as she was less surprised, remembering the blonde was much stronger then she looked. Leah still hadn't figured out how Zelda could be so strong at times and yet still look so dainty.

"Ha! You surprised Hugo, little flower." The strong man laughed. "Hear take some tickets you earned them!"

"Thanks" Zelda said taking the tickets with a childlike grin.

Running over to Leah gleefully, the two moved on.

"What next?" Zelda asked, shoving her recently won tickets into her pocket.

"I'm getting kinda hungry." Leah said with a shrug.

"Me too, I think there's food up the hill." Zelda said as she pointed out someone carrying a hot dog coming from uphill.

The two walked up the hill to find a large amount of stands selling different kind of food and sweets. Zelda could see Gus at a stand making burgers and rushed over. Gus was selling his so called 'famous survival burgers'. Zelda ordered one interested in what all the fuss was about, she was happy to say she wasn't disappointed. Turning around with her food in her hand she suddenly realised that Leah wasn't with her. Worried she had run off without the artist she began searching the area for her friend. Luckily she was able to find her friend quite quickly as she appeared with a large cotton candy.

"Sorry did I run off?" Zelda asked worriedly as the two found a park bench they could sit on.

"No don't worry, I just went to grab something sweet as you ordered your burger."

"Wait wasn't I supposed to pay? Here let me just…" Zelda said trying to fish out some money from her pocket.

"It's fine." Leah said quickly stopping her. "You can make it up to me latter."

"That looks good! I should get one myself." Zelda said as she took the last bite of her burger.

"You want some?" Leah asked as she tilted the treat towards the blonde, offering her a piece.

Zelda hesitated for a second before taking a small piece off and began to munch on it. Leah watched in amusement as the blonde's face turned to delight as she chewed. For some reason her Leah couldn't stop thinking about how cute the blonde looked as she ate the fluffy pink treat. The sight brought a small shade of pink to the artist's cheeks.

The two girls returned to Zelda's display after an afternoon of fun. The two had a great time playing carnival games and hanging out, returning just in time for the judging. Zelda stood in front of her display as Leah watched from the crowd, Lewis walked by carefully marking each display with a clipboard. After a tense couple minutes Lewis finally addressed the crowd.

"It's been a great year and it's wonderful to see displays a beautiful as these that truly show everything that this valley has to offer." Lewis said proudly. "I'd like to thank all of our participants for their hard work, each display is a perfect representation of everyone's personality. Yet of course the hardest part of my job comes again, I have to decide a winner. So it is my great honour to announce the winners of this years display competition! In third place… Marnie Moore!" Lewis shouted letting the crowd cheer before continuing. "In second place… Zelda Hyrule!"

The crowd once again cheered, Leah was clapping a little louder then the rest.

"And in first place…" Lewis continued. "Pierre Carter!"

The crowd cheered and watched a Lewis award ribbons to each winner. After the ribbons had been handed out the crowd started to part. Zelda came running up to Leah and wrapped her in a big hug. Leah was surprised once again, the gesture bringing a large blush to her face but she quickly returned the hug. Leah felt as if time slowed down, feeling the genuine warmth from her friend. Being so close to the blonde made her heart race, and she couldn't understand why. Leah was slightly saddened when her friend pulled way but that feeling quickly changed as she saw the joy on her golden evening light shone from around her lighting her up perfectly. She was glowing, her smile only adding to her shine. Leah could only focus on Zelda, the rest of the world was just an indescribable blur around them. God she's beautiful, Leah thought. Then in that moment Leah understood how she felt about Zelda, why her heart always raced when she close and why it felt so amazing being near her. It was as if she could finally read the answer from a book that had been written in another language. The answer being so simple and obvious, yet it had eluded her till now. As she laughed and congratulated the blonde on her accomplishment she couldn't help but keep saying two words in her head over and over.

"Uh oh"


	13. Chapter: 13 (The Book Worm)

Leah walked quickly along the path into town. It was surprising that she had as much energy as she did considering that she hadn't had much sleep. Thoughts of Zelda kept entering her head making her feel confused, leaving the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. Leah new where she could probably find the person she was looking for, heading in a direct path to a nearby tree she could already see the red haired girl she was looking for. Striding over to under the tree she stood above the young woman. Looking up from the book she had been reading, she smiled at Leah. Penny was the Stardew Valley's local book worm and the closest thing to a teacher the town had. She had red hair that was usually done into two small buns in the back. She was quiet and timid but volunteered to tutor the young kids for school credit. The nearest school was very far away and it was difficult for families to send their kids their everyday, so Penny took up the role of keeping them educated until they were old enough to attend the closer middle school.

"I need your help." Leah said quickly.

"Uh… ok." Penny said with a smile. "What's wrong?" She said closing her book as she got up.

"I… uh… not here." Leah said grabbing her by the wrist. "Let's talk at my place."

Penny didn't have anytime to respond because she was suddenly being pulled along towards Leah's. The two walked in relative silence, Penny's curiosity only growing as time went on. Only till they were both inside Leah's cottage did Leah start to talk again.

"I need to vent to somebody about something, and there's no way I'm talking to drama queen about it." Leah said.

Penny understood who she meant, Elliot was a good friend but at times he could be a tad… over dramatic about certain things. Penny thought it was probably due to him being an a writer although she never found it too annoying, she thought it was nice to see a man with a sensitive side.

"Okay, what is it?" Penny asked giving Leah her undivided attention.

"Alright…" Leah said taking a deep breath. "I think I have feelings towards Zelda."

There was a long pause before Penny spoke which only made Leah feel more anxious.

"Are you sure?" Penny asked calmly.

"Pretty sure."

"I didn't realize you were gay." Penny said, amazing Leah at how well she was taking this.

"I'm not! Well at least I don't think I am…" Leah said as she started to pace back and forth across the room. "I mean I've had boy friends before but… thinking about it I do remember a few times I thought a girl was really pretty, but I thought those were just normal thoughts that all girls had, you know some kind of envy thing built into us I didn't realize that meant I was attracted to them and…"

"Slow down." Penny said gently, guiding her friend to a nearby chair. "Let's just take this one step at a time, Okay?"

"Yea. Sorry."

"Now." Penny said grabbing another chair and placing it across from her friend. "How does Zelda make you feel?"

Leah thought about it for a few seconds trying to find the write words. "Scared… but amazing at the same time. She has this energy around her that makes me feel so… joyous, like I'm remembering why it's so wonderful to be alive. She's so strong… she's always smiling and happy and… It's like she glows. At the fair yesterday I couldn't stop thinking of… how beautiful she looked."

"Awwww" Penny said making Leah snap back to reality, blushing heavily at the realization of what she just said. "That's so romantic." Penny said as she began to drift off into her own world.

"But what do I do?" Leah asked.

"Well you have to tell her!"

"No way! This isn't one of your romance novels Penny, this is real life. Zelda no doubt doesn't feel the same way about me and I don't want to ruin our friendship."

"How do you know she doesn't feel the same way? Do you even know if she's straight?"

"She…" Leah began before remembering fully the conversation they had. "She said no guys had ever been her… type."

"Then perhaps there's hope."

"Just because she's never had a boyfriend doesn't mean she's into girls, Penny."

"It certainly doesn't say she's not. I guess you'll just have to do some detective work." Penny said happily. "Find out if she's gay without her realising."

"How on earth am I supposed to do that?" Leah cried. "And what if I accidentally screw something up?"

"You're just going to have to try, Leah" Penny said gently. "Otherwise you'll never know and you'll always regret it."

Leah was worried, she wasn't that clever so trying to trick Zelda into giving her answers was probably a bad idea. The best thing she could do was act like nothing had changed, that way she could at least still make their friendship work. The last thing she wanted to do was lose Zelda…

"I guess I'll just see what happens."

 **Notes From Author:**

Sorry about taking so long to post the latest chapter, I've been really busy in life recently. To make up for the time I'll be posting a few chapters today. Anyways thanks for all the support I've been receiving, it really get me motivated to write more.

-Mattunknown


	14. Chapter: 14 (Spirits eve)

Zelda took in her surroundings as she walked into town, she was impressed to say the least. Tonight was Spirits eve, a night dedicated to things that went bump in the night. Zelda was surprised to hear that Pelican Town took spirits eve very seriously and always held a big event in town during the occasion. There was a large feast spread out in the town square and Zelda could see decorations in every direction, it was hard to believe the fair had been there only a week ago.

"Wow it's weird to think to think that this is still Pelican town." Zelda said

"Yea it's pretty crazy right?" Abigail said. "This has to be my favourite time of year."

"Of course the girl who spends the most time in the graveyard, would love spirits eve the most." Zelda teased.

The two girls walked up to the large feast that was spread around four large tables. Jack O'lanterns were scattered around the square each one with either a scary or humorous face carved into tables were filled with sweet foods, and treats. Pies and cakes were on display, some decorated with fake spiders and cartoonish monsters. Zelda helped herself to a slice of pumpkin pie as Abigail bit into a candy apple.

"Come on I want to check out the monster cage." Abigail said nodding to a large metal cage that had been set up.

Inside the cage there were two skeletons walking around mindlessly, without a real purpose. Abigail walked up to the large metal prison and grabbed the bars, Zelda followed intrigued at the creatures inside.

"Are those… real?" Zelda asked as one turned its head to look at her.

"Yes." Said an old man who was standing next to the cage. "And best not stand too close." He said to Abigail.

The man had white hair and a black eye patch over his left eye. He was wearing a strange outfit and a cloak that was draped over the right half of his body. Zelda at first thought he was just in costume and joking but reading his serious face she thought otherwise.

"Zelda this is Marlon, he runs the Adventurer's guild." Abigail explained.

"Nice to meet you." Zelda said trying not ignore the fact that one of the skeletons had started to slowly walk towards their side of the cage.

"Yes, Rasmodius mentioned you before, said you were naturally gifted in magic." Marlon said

"Well… uh… I don't know about that." Zelda said taking a small step back from the cage as the skeleton reached the edge.

"I would suggest being careful." Marlon said watching the skeleton stare directly at the blonde. "Dark creatures are often attracted to those with powerful aura."

Zelda just stared worriedly at the skeleton, knowing that the adventurer's were the ones who had captured the creature's she wasn't too scared of it breaking loose but the way it staired continuously at her made the blonde feel uneasy.

"Best leave creatures like these to your friend." Marlon said gesturing at Abigail before walking off.

"He's pretty cool right?" Abigail said happily. "And did you hear what he said? He thinks I can handle myself!"

"Yea well glad you're happy, I'll probably be having nightmares tonight of skeletons attacking me in my sleep." Zelda said trying not to look at the skeleton that was trying to stare her down.

"Don't worry Zelda, monsters like these usually don't like to come out in the open, and besides they would burn up in the morning sun if they tried."

"I'll try and remember that." Zelda said giving a weak smile.

The two girls turned to see Sam and Sebastian walking towards them. Zelda noticed Abigail's smile widened slightly as she locked eyes with Sebastian. Zelda made sure to take a mental snapshot for future teasing material.

"Hey you guys." Sebastian greeted as he approached. "Checking out the monster cage?"

"Pretty crazy animatronics right?" Sam said checking out the skeleton that was staring down Zelda.

"How do you know they're not real?" Abigail said raising an eyebrow.

"Pffft as if, nice try Abby but I'm as stupid as you think." Sam said rolling his eyes.

"Well if they are mechanical I can't figure out how they work." Sebastian said with a shrug.

"Well maybe this is one puzzle you just can't solve." Sam said

"And maybe you're just naive." Abigail scoffed.

"Seb and I were going to check out the haunted maze you girls want to come?" Sam asked.

"Haunted maze?" Zelda said curiously.

"Yea there's a giant maze uphill that's different every year, they say in the centre there's a prize." Sam explained excitedly. "We thought that maybe you guys might be up for the challenge?"

"Sure we'd love too!" Abigail said looking more at Sebastian then anyone else.

Zelda only let out a small sigh and followed along, she didn't do too well around scary things but if she tried to back out now Abigail would no doubt drag her along anyway, although she'd never admit it was to be her wingman. The four gathered in front of the massive hedge maze, its thick walls reached high above any of their heads stopping them from seeing anything other than the first branching corridor that laid before them.

"I say we make this more interesting." Sam said giving Sebastian a sideways glance, his friend rolled his eyes in response. "Let's split into teams of two and see who can reach the middle first?"

"So you mean boys against girls? Zelda asked.

"Na let's mix it up a bit, how about Seb and Abigail you team up and Zelda and I will go… together." Sam said with a small smirk.

"Ok that sounds fun!" Zelda said pushing Abigail closer to Sebastian.

Abigail looked back and gave Zelda something between a glare and a pleading look. It's almost as if Abigail was trying to say ' _please don't leave me!'_. Zelda only gave her friend a cheeky wink as she walked over beside Sam. Sam had a big smile on his face which Sebastian only rolled his eyes at. Sam and Zelda gave the two a head start and waited to make sure that neither team could follow each other.

"Hey by the way, I might not be the best partner." Zelda said apologetically "I'm a pretty big chicken."

"No worries, you'll be safe with me." Sam said with smile.

"Just don't be surprised if I have to hold your hand." Zelda unaware that internally Sam was celebrating.

Abigail quickly realised that she wasn't in as much trouble as she thought, that talking to Sebastian was really easy. The two were getting along great and Abigail tried to stay relaxed. Abigail didn't know why she thought this would be hard, they had been friends for years. They liked the same geeky things so finding a topic of conversation wasn't hard.

"So what was with Sam? He was kinda acting weird before we left. Well weirder" Abigail asked her taller friend.

"Oh that, yea he's an idiot." Sebastian said sharing a laugh with the purple haired girl. "Yea this was all apart of his so called 'master plan' to get some alone time with Zelda." Sebastian explained.

"Uh…. why?" Abigail asked worried she already new the answer.

"He likes her and he wanted to make his move tonight." Sebastian sighed.

"Uh oh." Abigail said.

Leah watched the two blonde's enter the maze from a distance making sure she wouldn't be noticed. The artist had been searching for Zelda for a while but when she had spotted the farmer she was already heading off with her friends. Unable to help herself she followed the group and watched them make plans to split off into pairs. Something about how the way Sam acted around Zelda rubbed Leah the wrong way. She could see the boy's flirtatious actions coming from a mile away, yet somehow poor Zelda was oblivious. Leah followed from a distance as the two walked through maze, using the shadows to her advantage.

"So how's your band coming?" Zelda asked the boy.

"It's going great, Seb is going to ask Abigail if she would be our drummer then we'll be all set." Sam replied happily.

"I'm sure Abigail would love to, she's quite musical."

"Yea, I was going to ask an old friend of mine who lives in another town but Sebastian really wanted Abigail in the band."

"Really?" Zelda said smiling, imagining what her friends reaction would be when she told her.

The two came across a long pathway that seemed slightly different than the rest, the dirt on the path looked softer somehow like it had been turned over recently. Zelda was unfortunately the first to find out why as a hand sprung out of the ground and grabbed her foot. Zelda screamed in shock and grabbed hold of Sam who helped pull her out of the hands grasp. The two ran down the hallway as more hands sprung up from the ground as they passed.

"W..w..what was that?" Zelda said shakily trying to calm herself.

"There's a bunch of traps in the maze designed to scare people, don't worry none of them can hurt you." Sam explained laughing a little.

"Fun." Zelda said sarcastically.

"Let's keep going." Sam said putting an arm around Zelda. "We'll be fine."

The two walked on not noticing Leah scowling behind them.

"So I wanted to ask you something?" Sebastian said, his hands in his pockets as he walked.

"Oh ya? What is it?" Abigail said blushing.

"Sam and I are starting a band. It's kinda dumb but I was wondering if you'd be our drummer?"

"M..me?" Abigail said surprised. "You thought of me?"

"I know you play the drums and I know you're really musical."

"How'd you figure I was musical?"

"Well I've heard you play your flute." Sebastian said looking up at the night sky. "On rainy days I sometimes take walks around the house and sometimes I hear your flute from across the lake. It's very… relaxing."

Abigail went completely red, she did like to practice her flute but she didn't think anyone could hear her, especially not Sebastian.

"Th..thanks" Abigail said after a while. "I'd love to be your drummer, it sounds like fun."

The two smiled at each other and continued, Abigail's smile being the bigger of the two. The smile didn't last too long though because as soon as the two turned a corner Abigail stopped dead in her tracks. A large hallway with giant spiders blocked their path. Black and hairy, they were everywhere, some were even moving. Although subconsciously she new they were fake, Abigail's spine shivered as she stared down the hallway.

"What's wrong?" Sebastian asked noticing the girl had stopped.

"I can't." Was all Abigail could say. "Spiders" she said sadly looking down at her feet.

"Oh." Sebastian said releasing the girl's dalema.

Sebastian walked behind the girl and covered her eyes with one hand, and placed his other on her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Abigail asked confused, blushing heavily at how close the taller boy was to her.

"You won't be afraid if you can't see them." He said calmly, slowly pushing her forward making sure he was careful to guide her.

"What? Wait!" Abigail protested trying to stop herself from moving, but Sebastian didn't budge and gently forced her forwards.

The taller boy carefully led the girl through the hallway, making sure she didn't get too close to any of the spiders that were on display. By the end they had made it through and Abigail had only yelped once when a leaf had brushed against her leg.

"That wasn't so bad now was it?" Sebastian said letting go of the girl and taking out a cigarette.

"N..no" Abigail said weakly. "It wasn't that bad."

Leah watched carefully as the two friends sat down at the large park fountain to take a rest. Sam sat next to Zelda with a nervous smile.

"So Zelda, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go out with me and grab a drink sometime." Sam asked trying to act as cool as possible.

Leah felt like she couldn't breath, as if all the air out of her lungs had been stolen. This was it, she was right. Sam was asking Zelda on a date, and if she said yes… It meant that small hope that Leah had was gone.

"Uh… you mean like a date?" Zelda asked nervously. Leah could tell the girl had finally started to understand Sam's actions that night.

"Yeah." Sam said eagerly.

"Listen Sam… I'm really sorry but… I only like you as a friend."

"Oh." Sam said looking down at his feet.

"Sam you're a great guy and a lot of fun." Zelda said placing a hand one his shoulder. "You're going to make a girl really happy some day."

"Yeah, no sweat. Thanks for being so cool about it." Sam said smiling. "Still friends?"

"Of course." The girl said punching him in the arm playfully.

Leah probably would have been surprised that Sam took his rejection so well but she was too busy trying to fight the urge to dance in happiness.

After a long time of wandering around the maze the two groups unfortunately ended up together again, meeting at a cross road the two groups started laughing at their predicament.

"Hey guys" Abigail laughed. "Is it just me or is that the entrance?"

"Looks like it." Sebastian said. "Guess it's a tie."

The group of friends walked out of the maze together laughing and joking around.

"So anything interesting happen to you guys." Abigail asked Zelda.

"Sam asked me out and I said no. We're cool." Zelda said happily. "How about you?"

"Nothing much." Abigail responded with a shrug.

"Really? Because Sam said something about Sebastian asking you to join their band." Zelda said with a smirk. " Apparently Sebastian really wanted you. Something about you being the only one he would let in the band."

"Shut up."


	15. Chapter: 15 (The Snow Fall)

Zelda woke up to the sound of purring and the feeling of small paws crawling on her back. The blond gave a small groan as she slowly stirred from beneath her covers. Opening her eyes she was greeted by her cat's face, staring at her with intrigue.

"Morning." Zelda said stroking her feline companion. "What time is it?" She asked out loud checking her bedside table clock.

It was 11:00 in the morning, normally that would mean Zelda was late but it was a special time of year. Winter had finally come around bringing the blonde her least busy season. Winter meant that Zelda had to wait a few months before she could grow any kind of crop. The only responsibilities she had now were taking care of her chickens, although they were easy to handle. Zelda had set them up with a heater to keep them warm and all she had to do was put out fresh food for them at some point in the day. She was lucky to have them as their eggs would be her only source of income till spring rolled around.

"I guess you want some breakfast Hun?" The blonde said as she rolled out of bed.

Dex responded with a small meow before jumping off the bed and running over to the kitchen to wait. Zelda shivered as she left the warmth of her bed. She dressed quickly and donned her red sweater for comfort. After feeding Dex, Zelda quickly lit her fire place. Taking a seat on the couch she sighed, she new it was going to be a boring day. With no chores to keep her busy and Abigail committing to band practice, Zelda wasn't sure how she could entertain herself. Zelda began watching tv but it did little to distract the blonde from her overwhelming boredom. A few hours passed before she was rescued by a knock at the door. Zelda was surprised as she wasn't expecting any company but she didn't care, company was company.

"Hello?" Zelda said as she opened the door, the cold air seeping in from outside. To Zelda's delight it was Leah, dressed in a large green coat and thick snow boots.

"Hey" Leah said a little nervously. "I needed a break from work and I thought you could use some company."

"Of course, come inside and warm up." Zelda said smiling.

Leah stepped inside and took off her coat and boots, rubbing her hands in an attempt to warm herself. Zelda ran over to the kitchen and began to make to large cups of hot chocolate.

"So how is everything going?" Zelda asked from the kitchen as Leah took a seat on the couch.

"Good, I've been working faster than I thought I would which means I can take a few breaks here and there." Leah said stroking Dex, who had jumped up on her lap. "How about you?"

"Things are pretty slow around here. Now I only have my chickens to take care of so there's not much to do." Zelda explained. "I have to be pretty careful cause right now they're my only source of income. It's a good thing I have my savings to fall back on."

"Yea must be tough for you this time of year."

"I'll manage and in the spring I'll be back to work."

Zelda walked back into the living room carrying two large mugs of hot chocolate with two large marshmallows in each.

"Thanks, you read my mind." Leah said taking a large sip from her warm drink.

"So what are you working on at the moment?" Zelda asked.

"I've got a few projects going right now, none are close to being done though." Leah explained "I've been sculpting mostly, I've finished a few paintings but I hit a block recently and I just don't l know what to paint."

"I'm sure you'll figure something out." Zelda said. "I see you're carrying around your sketchbook." The blonde said pointing to the artist's coat where a large red notebook was sticking out one of the pockets.

"Yea I bring it around almost everywhere now, just incase I see something I want to draw." Leah said. "Actually… now that I think about it. I think I see something right now." The artist moved Dex off her lap and quickly ran to collect her sketchbook only to come back and sit on the couch.

"What's that?" Zelda asked curiously.

Leah opened her sketch book and flipped quickly to a blank page, taking out a sharp pencil from her pocket she looked up at the blonde with a smile.

"You." The artist smirked.

"What?" Zelda said surprised as she began to blush.

"Can I draw you? I think you'ed make a great subject."

"Really?" Zelda said trying not to turn even more red. " … what should I do?"

"Just sit there and keep looking pretty." Leah said as she started.

Zelda felt her heart skip a beat. "P.P..Pretty?" She stuttered.

'Oh crap.' Leah thought as she realised what she just said. "Just relax and act normal." She said trying to push down the feeling of embarrassment that she felt.

Zelda tried to ignore what Leah had said but her words kept bouncing around in her head and she couldn't help but smile softly with a small blush. 'She thinks I'm pretty' The blonde thought to herself as she tried to stay as still a possible. For the next few minutes the room held a silence that was only broken by the sound of the crackling fire place. Zelda couldn't tell how long had passed but she didn't care, she was too busy thinking about what Leah had said. The blonde was lost in her own little world and was only pulled out when she noticed Leah putting down the sketchbook in front of her. Zelda was eager to see her friends drawing and quickly picked up the sketchbook to check her work. To Zelda's surprise there were a few sketches of herself on the page. In the center was a large drawing of Zelda's face and shoulders, she was smiling softly and she looked a bit shy. Around the page were a few other sketches that the blonde assumed Leah had improvised based on her likeness. Images of Zelda laughing and running were scattered around, there was even a small one of Zelda cuddling Dex.

"So what do you think?" Leah asked nervously. "I got a bit carried away didn't I?"

"No, These are great!" Zelda said laughing. "I'm impressed that you were able to create these other images on the spot like this."

"Its easier when I have a reference in front of me." Leah said. "You were fun to draw though, you should consider becoming a model."

"Art suits you Leah! You really have a gift."

"T..Thanks" Leah said blushing once again. "You really helped me come out of my shell though. Before you came along I was too scared to show most people my work."

"I get that, I'm really shy about my singing."

"You Sing?" Leah said excitedly

"Uh..Yea." Zelda said

"Let me hear you sing something!"

"What, right now?"

"Yea, come on."

"I… I don't know…" Zelda said shyly.

"Please. I promise I won't laugh."

"Alright." Zelda sighed before getting up from the couch and walking over to her bedroom. Leah waited patiently until the blonde returned with a small harp.

"You play the harp? Your full of surprises." Leah giggled.

"Hey you said you wouldn't laugh." Zelda said through her own chuckles.

Giving the strings a few quick strums she closed her eyes and began to play.

 _Oh youth, guided by the servant of the goddess, unite earth and sky, and bring light to the land._

 _Oh youth, show the two whirling sails the way to the Light Tower...and before you a path shall open, and a heavenly song you shall hear._

Leah was entranced by the blonde's voice. It was soft and sweet, like a dream. Her heart began to race as she listened to her friend sing, watching her fingers dance up and down the strings. As Zelda looked up she noticed Leah's amazed expression and blushed.

"You have an incredible voice." Leah said smiling brightly.

Zelda only smiled shyly in thanks.

"I had know idea you were musical." Leah said.

"I'm not really… I can only play the harp cause my mom taught me when I was little."

"Well your really good, you shouldn't doubt yourself. You have the sweetest voice I've ever heard." Leah said blushing slightly at the thought.

Zelda turned even redder than she already was and there was a moment of sweet silence between the two. Leah stared at the blonde girl across from her, curled up on the couch. She was playing with her red sweater, strands of her hair falling in front of her face. She was smiling shyly with a clear blush visible on her face. Leah's heart raced, all she wanted to do was kiss her. To brush the hair out of her face and press her lips against the blonde's. But she was too scared, too afraid. A voice inside her head kept shouting at her to say something but she never did. The silence stayed unbroken, somehow not being as awkward as it should be. The two weren't sure how long they sat there, it didn't feel like a long time but something told them it was.

"You want me to put on a movie or something?" Zelda finally said.

"Sure, sounds like fun."

Zelda quickly got up and put in a DVD, turning on the tv. However when she came back to the couch she sat a little closer to Leah, something she hoped Leah wouldn't notice. Leah did take note and thought of it as nothing but a happy accident. The two spent the rest of the evening laughing and talking about the movie they were watching. When it finally ended the two girls were having too much fun to notice.

"It's getting pretty late." Leah sighed. "I should probably head home."

"If you have too." Zelda chuckled.

"Thanks for having me." Leah said as she grabbed her coat.

"Anytime." Zelda said running up to her friend. "I..I like having you around."

Zelda didn't realise how close she had actually come until she was standing an inch away from her friend. Both girls blushed at the realisation and Zelda took a small step back, laughing nervously.

Leah smiled and waved goodbye as the small voice in her head screamed at her to say something. Zelda smiled and waved back as she watched her friend walk out the door. As soon as the door closed Zelda let out a large sigh.

"Smooth Zelda." She said to herself. "Real smooth."

The blonde turned to see Dex sitting on the floor watching her.

"You don't think I was pushing anything right?" Zelda asked her cat. "I mean she didn't seem to mind…" Zelda blushed hard as she remembered how close she had accidentally gotten.

Dex just tilted his head in response as if he was confused. Walking over to the coffee table he jumped up and sat down again and stared at a large book, letting out a small Moew.

"Her sketchbook!" Zelda said as her attention was drawn. "She must have forgotten it."

Zelda picked up the book and quickly put on her snow boots.

"Thanks Dex." She called as she ran out the door.

The blonde new she had to be quick other wise she might miss her friend. The sun was setting and the last thing she wanted was to be caught outside in the dark. Running through the snow she saw the red haired girl up ahead.

"Leah!" She called out as she approached her friend. "You forgot your-"

The blonde was unable to finish as she tripped on a root that had been hidden in the snow, stumbling forwards she collided with her friend just as she was turning around. Zelda was surprised as she found herself on top of Leah who she had been unfortunately knocked over. As she opened her eyes she was mortified to find that she was pressing her lips against the artist's. Two voices inside Zelda's head were screaming at once, both for different reasons. Zelda pulled herself away to see Leah's stunned face.

"I'm sorry! Sorry, sorry, sorry." The blonde said frantically, still on top of her friend. "I w..was…I m..mean y..you left your sketchbook and I was-"

"Will you go out with me?" Leah said suddenly.

"W..what?" Zelda asked thinking she had misheard her.

"Will you go out with me?" Leah asked again looking up at the blonde worriedly.

"R..really?" Zelda said. "You mean like on a date?"

"Yeah."

"T..that sounds nice." Zelda said with a shy smile. Actually Zelda thought it was a lot more than nice, but her vocabulary seemed to be limited at the moment.

Leah returned the smile until her mind was able to clear slightly and she realised where the two were.

"Wait Zelda you're not wearing a coat you must be freezing." Leah said worriedly as they helped each other up and out of the snow.

"I'll be fine." Zelda said unconvincingly as she shivered slightly.

"Come on let me walk you back." Leah offered as she took off her coat and warped it around the girl.

"You don't have t-"

"Yes I do. You came all they way here to give me my sketchbook it's the least I can do is keep you from getting a cold." Leah said quickly taking the blonde by the hand.

The two walked back together holding hands. They only broke when they arrived back at Zelda's porch. Zelda smiled shyly at Leah as handed back her coat.

"So… Dinner at my place?" Leah said hesitantly, worried she had somehow misheard Zelda's previous answer. "Friday?"

"That sounds amazing." Zelda said smiling brightly with a large blush visible on her face.

"G..Great, is seven an ok time?"

"Of course! No problem."

"O..Ok… well… see you then, I guess."

"Yea… see you then."

Zelda watched the artist leave for as long as she could before she had to go inside to escape the cold night air. Closing the door behind her she walked over to her bed and sat down slowly, taking in everything that had just happened.

"L..Leah just asked me out." She whispered quietly to herself.

A few seconds passed before the blonde's face lit up with a huge smile. Throwing herself backwards on to the bed laughing with giddiness.

"Leah just asked me out!" She shouted grabbing a pillow and hugging it tightly. She couldn't stop laughing, she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so happy.

 **-Notes From Author-**

To anyone who didn't notice the song Zelda sings is a reference to "Skyward Sword." Zelda being able to play the harp is a bit of a double reference to the Legend of Zelda franchise and the cut scene in Stardew Valley were the player's farmer pulls out a small harp and plays with Abigail. It's nice when things work out :D


	16. Chapter: 16 (The Preparation)

Zelda slowly opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. She was lying in bed still half asleep, listening to the small sounds that came from around the house. Zelda blushed and then smiled as she recalled the events of the previous night. Dex jumped up onto the bed and stared into the blonde's eyes with his usual blank expression, letting out a small moew.

"I've got a date tomorrow." Zelda said happily to the cat, who just sat there and stared.

Zelda looked back up towards the ceiling and thought again about her plans for Friday, getting excited all over again. The blonde still couldn't believe that Leah had actually asked her on a date, it all seemed like a dream. A dream Zelda was worried she had just woken up from. She still felt embarrassed about accidentally kissing Leah, even if it lead to being asked out. Zelda touched her lips blushing, remembering how good it had felt. It wasn't exactly the way she wanted her first kiss to go, she only had herself to blame for that. 'Classic Zelda' she thought to herself, as she rolled her eyes with sigh. Still, she actually gotten a date! And a date with Leah no less.

"Oh my Yoba!" Zelda shouted out loud, startling Dex in the process. "I've got a date with Leah!" She said as if the realisation had just hit her. "What am going to do?"

The idea no longer brought her extreme joy it only brought panic to the blonde's mind. She had no experience with dating, or anything even remotely close. What would she talk about? What would she wear? Launching herself out of bed Zelda threw on her clothes quickly. Grabbing a large apple for breakfast from the kitchen and making sure Dex's bowl was full of food she rushed out the door, making sure to grab her coat on the way. Zelda needed to talk to someone and she knew their was only one person she could trust. She knew Abigail usually went into the mines today so she had be quick other wise she would miss her. Taking the northern path from her farm she would be able to head around town and arrive near Robin's house up near the mountains. If she hurried she could intercept Abigail before she reached the mines. It wasn't as cold as usual, and it made being outside a lot more pleasant.

As she turned a corner Zelda bumped into Linus who was taking a morning stroll. The blonde fell backwards becoming dazed by the collision. Luckily Linus was a lot softer than most, so running into him wasn't as painful.

"Easy there Zelda, are you ok?" Linus said, gently helping up the young girl.

"Sorry Linus! I'm in a big hurry." Zelda responded as she dashed of leaving Linus chuckling.

Zelda passed by Robin's house and ran towards the mines. Running alongside the mountain lake she took notice of how peaceful the water looked, it reflected the sky perfectly. Zelda could see in the distance the figure of her friend walking along the side of the lake. She had her sword sheathed on her back and a large flashlight in her hand.

"Abigail!" Zelda shouted to her friend. "Wait!"

The shorter girl turned in surprise to see the blonde running up to her, completely out of breath.

"Hey, what's up?" Abigail said raising an eyebrow.

"I…need…your...help." Zelda said through gasps.

"Just slow down, catch your breath." Abigail said leading the blonde to take a seat by the water.

Zelda slowly caught her breath as Abigail waited patiently beside her, watching the clouds above for entertainment.

"So what's wrong you seemed pretty desperate to talk." Abigail said as she noticed the blonde had finally relaxed a bit.

"I need help."

"It's good that you're finally admitting it." Abigail teased with a laugh.

"Ha Ha." Zelda said, each word dripping with sarcasm. "I'm serious."

"Sorry, what is it?"

"L..Leah… asked me out on a date." Zelda said not looking her friend in the eye.

"Wait, for real?" Abigail said looking at her friend excitedly. "Congrats Zel! See I told you she liked you."

"Thanks bu-"

"Wait, wait, wait! Tell me everything that happened." Abigail said moving closer in anticipation.

"R..Really?" Zelda said a little embarrassed.

"Yea! Come on I want details!"

Zelda reluctantly explained what had happened only pausing in embarrassment when Abigail let out a few teasing 'oooh's and 'aaah's. By the time Zelda had finished the shorter girl was in a fit of laughter.

"I can't believe you accidentally kissed her!" She said laughing. "Real smooth, casanova."

"It wasn't my fault, I tripped!" Zelda said waving her arms around frantically.

"Whatever." Abigail said smirking. "I bet you weren't complaining though."

"Quit it!" Zelda shouted blushing heavily. Abigail only giggled in response. "Are you going to help me or what?"

"What do you need help with any way? You already got the girl."

"I am freaking out! I've never been on a date before. What do I need to know? What if I show up and I'm underdressed? What if I say something stupid? What if she's expecting more than just dinner? What do I do?" Zelda ranted before lying on in the snow and hinding her face in her hands. The snow made an easy cushion for the both to lie on.

"Calm down Zel." Abigail said gently. "I'm sure everything's going to be fine, you're thinking too much about this."

"But what if-"

"Just be yourself, that's all that Leah wants. I'm sure that she's just as nervous as you, about all this."

"I just don't want to mess this up."

"You won't, trust me." Abigail said placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You'll be fine you just need to relax. It's not like you've never spoken to her before, think of it like you're just hanging out with a friend."

"Yea, your right." Zelda sighed, calming down. "I wonder what leah's thinking right now."

Leah was pacing back and forth in her cabin panicking about what she was going to do, Penny was with her watching with concern. Leah had called Penny and asked for her to come over saying that she had needed help and was desperate. Leah had explained mostly what happened but had started to freak out towards the end of the story.

"I'm such an idiot! What am I going to do?" Leah said still pacing around the room.

"I thought this is what you wanted?" Penny asked.

"I did, I just… I don't know."

"So she said yes?" Penny questioned making sure she was clear on what had happened.

"To be honest I'm shocked she really did. I didn't actually mean to ask her out… it just… kinda... Slipped out." Leah said trying not to facepalm as she remembered the events of last night.

"Well I guess you can count yourself lucky." Penny said happily.

"What am I going to do Penny? She's coming over tomorrow and I don't have a romantic bone in my body! I can't throw together a date last minute." Leah said starting to panic. "Ugh she's going to realise I'm a total loser."

"Leah you're not a loser, and you're not going to throw together a date last minute because you've got me." Penny said 'in a matter of fact' way. "You have all of today and tomorrow to prepare."

"Y..Yeah… your right… plenty of time." Leah said trying to convince herself.

"Now you go and buy some groceries and I'll start cleaning up here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, you need something to serve for dinner tomorrow. You could use some air anyways."

"Uh... ok." Leah said grabbing her foraging basket and walking out the door.

The artist was thankful that Penny was being so helpful. Without her Leah would probably be curled up under her bed hyperventilating a that moment. Penny was right she did need some air, this gave her the time to actually process everything that was happening. It was pleasant outside, the brisk air felt refreshing on Leah's face. Leah had really just asked out her friend, and more surprisingly she had said yes. This was her first date with a girl and that in it self made Leah's head spin. A few months ago she didn't even realize she swung that way, and yet just yesterday she had kissed a girl for the first time. Granted it was by accident but that didn't mean she didn't like it.

Leah blushed at the thought, as she entered Pierre's store. Looking around it didn't take long for her to find the ingredients she would need for her salads, it was nice to know that all of Pierre's products were organic. Looking around the store Leah thought about what she could possibly make for dinner. She wasn't really sure what Zelda would like so she wandered around the store stumped, only stopping when in front of the frozen food section. The artist eyed a large frozen lasagna that was meant for two, and examined it. 'I hope this will do.' Leah thought to herself.

Leah paid quickly and headed back towards her home a little faster then usual. She knew she was being ridiculous but the artist couldn't help but feel nervous that if she ran into Zelda the meeting might be awkward. It didn't take long for her to get back home and when she opened her door she was surprised to find that Penny had managed to clean up some of the mess. Her paint trays had been arranged into neat piles and Leah was sure the floor had been swept.

"Wow Penny, this place looks great." Leah said surprised.

"It's not ready yet. There are still the dishes that need to be washed, and the paintings should be arranged." Penny said happily.

"Thanks for everything Penny, I don't know what I would do without your… did you strip the bed?" Leah asked, noticing the bed had been laid out with new sheets.

"I thought you could use fresh sheets, you might use it tomorrow night." Penny replied with a cheeky smile.

"What are you... " Leah began before realizing what Penny was talking about. The artist's whole face went red in an instant. "What! No! Thats not… Were not going to… Agggh." Leah yelled waving her arms around wildly.

Penny only laughed as she watched her friend nearly die of embarrassment.


	17. Chapter: 17 (The Date)

Zelda felt her heart beat faster as she approached the cabin's wooden door, anxiety was gnawing in the back of her mind. It was friday and the night's air was bitter cold, Zelda had her coat done up tight as a result. 'Was she ready?' was the question that she kept asking herself over and over as she walked. The blonde had spent the entire day trying to figure out what to wear, much to Abigail's annoyance. The day had consisted of Zelda changing outfits and Abigail simply replying "You look fine." over and over again. It was only when Abigail went over to her dresser and picked out the blonde's clothes for her did they stop, declaring "If you can't pick something then I'll pick something for you!".

Zelda thought she looked ok, but now standing in front of the her date's door she felt the urge to run away and hide. Pushing down her fears and mustering all the courage she had the blonde gently knocked on the artist's door. She heard the sound of motion from within and it wasn't long before the door opened. The light shone from inside, illuminating the ground around her. Zelda smiled nervously as she saw Leah standing in the doorway wearing a wooly green sweater, she also had the same nervous smile across her face.

"Come in, you must be freezing." Leah said helping zelda inside and taking her coat.

"It's pretty cold out there today, but it nice and toasty in here." Zelda said observing the roaring fire in the fireplace.

After hanging up the blonde's coat, Leah turned to see her date properly for the first time. Zelda was wearing her usual red sweater and a lovely skirt with thick leggings to keep her warm. Leah could tell that Zelda was wearing a small amount of lipstick for the occasion. Her long and flowing hair was down as usual but seemed to shine in the light. Leah blushed as she took in the sight, feeling her heart beat slightly faster. Zelda noticed Leah's table had been set up for a candlelit dinner for two. Zelda's smile widened as her cheeks turned a slight shade of pink, she knew she was a sucker for romance. The two took a seat at the table, both still retaining their goofy smiles.

"I hope Lasagna's ok." Leah said nervously as she brought out the food.

"It looks great, and did you make the salad yourself?."

"Yea, I normally use fresh forest ingredients but that's a usually impossible in the winter. Unless you like eating an assortment of pine cones."

Zelda's giggle made Leah feel a bit more at ease. The two began eating their meal, Leah was thankful that the food turned out alright and she could tell that Zelda was enjoying it as well. Conversation seemed to come much more naturally than either of them thought, both interested in what was happening in each others lives.

"So how's your art going?" Zelda asked. "Any new inspirations you've come across?"

"I haven't done much since we last spoke but I did have an interesting idea this morning."

"What is it?"

"Well… It's just an idea but I was thinking about trying to turn one of my sculptures into a working animatronic. I thought it might be interesting, as it would be the first of its kind."

"That's sound really cool."

"Yea well… its just an idea, I don't know much about machines so I might ask Maru for help."

"You should go for it, doing something new and different is what artists do."

"What about you any new plans?" Leah asked.

"I've been looking into getting an automated sprinkler system installed, there pretty expensive but with the time it will save me I can produce twice as many crops."

"Wow, your little farm is really growing. You've come along way from when we first met."

Zelda smiled thinking of the first time the two had met, it seemed like forever ago.

"I have to say I'm a little surprised you asked me out." Zelda said shyly.

"I'm surprised you said yes." Leah said blushing slightly. "I've wanted to for a while now but I was afraid that you might not like me… that way."

"Well truth be told I've had a crush on you for a long time now, but I didn't know you were into girls."

"I didn't really know either until a month ago, it was a bit of an eye opener. So I guess that means I'm bisuxual." Leah said. "What about you?"

"I'm gay" Zelda said, surprised at how liberating it felt to tell someone without fear of rejection.

"Discovering my sexualtiy was a bit of a rollercoaster." Leah said shyly. "What was it like for you?"

Zelda was surprised by the question but understood where Leah was coming from, discovering something like this was a scary and confusing time for someone.

"I knew from a pretty young age." Zelda explained. "All the other girl's in class started noticing boys… but I started to noticed girls. Discovering was the easy part, dealing with it was a different story. I got bullied in school a lot because of it and that made life really difficult for a long time."

"I'm sorry…" Leah said sadly.

"It's not your fault, I just have trouble telling people. You and Abigail are the only ones who know."

"Well I haven't told anyone about me and… us... except for Penny."

"Ok…"

"Maybe since I'm still new to this we take it slow and keep it quiet? For now at least."

"Yea ok... " Zelda said with a small smile. "That sounds nice."

The two continued to talk about everything and nothing at the same time and finished there meal. In what felt like no time at all it was eleven and they realized they would have to say goodnight. Zelda stood at the door as the two said goodbye, her signature smile as cheerful as ever, it was clear she had a great time. As she stood outside the blonde's breath was visible in the cold air and it was hard to tell if it was the cold that was making her cheeks red or if she was just blushing, either way Leah thought she looked cute.

"Thanks, this was… Awesome." Zelda said giggling as she finally found the perfect word to describe the evening.

" problem." Leah said stuttering a little. The familiar voice in the back of her head was screaming at her once again, this time telling her to kiss her. "I…I mean...we should do this again sometime...If you want."

"One hundred percent yes." Zelda giggled as she watched the artist getting flustered.

The voice in Leah's head finally won as she stepped forward and moved close to the blonde, the world slowed down as the two stared into each other's eyes, blue meeting lilac. The blonde blushed as she relished what was coming, Leah's heart was pounding heavily and Zelda's felt like her's had stopped completely. Neither of them was sure who leaned in first but suddenly the two were in a deep passionate kiss. Neither could feel the cold any more instead they felt a warmth that slowly engulfed their whole body. Leah hummed softly against the blonde's lips as Zelda played with her sweater. When the two finally broke apart both had the biggest smile on their faces.

"Does this mean I have a girlfriend?" Zelda asked a little shyly.

"Only if its ok with you."

"Well I guess it's settled then." Zelda giggled.


	18. Chapter: 18 (The Ice Festival)

Zelda walked out the door with her coat done up tight, the air as brisk as ever. Luckily the sun was out and sky was a nice shade of blue making it a pleasant day. Unlike usual she was wearing a warm, gray Beanie as well. Courtesy of her new girlfriend. 'Man that feels good to say' Zelda thought to herself as she began walking. Leah and Zelda had been dating for a few weeks now and so far everything was going great. Leah was working a lot but always made time for the blonde, the two would usually have a movie night at Zelda's and cuddle up on the couch together. The artist had bought Zelda her new hat after noticing the blonde shivering on one of their walks together, it was an adorably sweet gesture.

Today the two were heading to the Ice Festival, a small event held by the town where people came together and… basically played in the snow together. There were two main events to the day; The Ice fishing contest and the Ice sculpting competition. Zelda was excited because she was lucky enough to have someone to cheer for in both events. Leah was entering the ice sculpting competition and Abigail was entering the Ice fishing contest. Both had been talking to Zelda about their events for a while now, clearly eager to win. Seeing the red haired girl up ahead she waved as she approached.

"Morning." Leah said giving Zelda a quick kiss. "I thought I'd come and collect you. You ready to go?"

"Yea! I'm pretty excited, you'd never get a town outing like this in the city." Zelda said smiling brightly.

"It's apparently a town tradition." Leah explained. "The town founders agreed that in the middle of winter everyone should get out of the house and come together for a day of fun."

"Only in Stardew Valley would an entire town devote one day to playing in the snow!" Zelda laughed.

The two arrived at the event which was located in front of Marnie's house and next to Leah's. Seeing the whole town there was a welcoming site. Zelda could see Willy on the Ice carving holes to fish in, to the left was a large area with huge blocks of Ice ready to be sculpt and to the right was a bunch of people making snowmen. There were also a bunch of well made igloos Scattered around the area. Amongst the many snowmen Zelda could see Abigail and Pierre standing next to a particularly strange one, The snowman's stick arms were positioned into a solute and its face, made of small pebbles, had a stern look to it. The two girls walked over to say hi to the pair.

"Hey guys." Abigail said. "What do you think of our snowgoon?"

"Snowgoon?" Leah said puzzled.

"For when I decide to take over my world with my snow henchmen." Abigail explained causing Zelda to laugh.

"Are you ready for the Ice fishing contest?" The blonde asked her shorter friend.

"Yea, I think it'll be fun. Although there's no way anyone's going to beat Willy. He brings his own professional gear and everything." Abigail said.

"I don't know why they let Willy enter in the first place." Pierre said joining the conversation. "It's not really fair when he fishes for a living. Still it'll be nice seeing Abigail take over this year and represent the family."

"You used to enter, Pierre?" Zelda said a little surprised.

"Dad used to fish every year but last time he slipped on the ice and swore off ice fishing for good." Abigail said with a hint of annoyance in her tone.

"Fishing is a young person's game anyway." Pierre said laughing nervously.

"Willy is older then you dad." Abigail said rolling her eyes.

Zelda helped Leah gather her equipment from inside her cabin and brought them over to the large blocks of ice. The event being a few feet from the artist's door was very convenient, Robin had to carry her equipment practically across the valley. Zelda placed the tool box she was carrying down next to a block of ice that Leah had picked out.

"I never would have guessed you could ice sculpt as well." Zelda said watching the artist as she circled the ice block, trying to visualize what she wanted.

"I can't really." Leah said "The only chance I get to practice is during the festival so it's more of a personal challenge."

"It's still pretty cool! How many people can say they date someone who can ice sculpt?"

"Well don't get too excited, I'll be lucky if I can get the final product looking straight instead of all wonky like." Leah said with a sigh.

The sound of a small whistle caught the attention of the two girls and both turned to see Lewis standing near the holes in the ice.

"The fishing is about to start, you should go watch Abigail." Leah said.

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay?"

"As much as I love your company, sculpting is a long and boring process that I know you won't enjoy. Go and support your friend, I'll be fine."

"Thanks Leah!" Zelda said before running off to join the gathering crowd.

Zelda took a place standing next to Sam and Sebastian, she was surprised as she realised that Sebastian was only wearing his black hoodie.

"Aren't you freezing?" Zelda asked her tall friend.

"Na, I never get cold." Sebastian replied with a shrug.

"No one knows how he does it." Sam said, who was wrapped in a large blue coat.

Lewis walked onto the ice and began the contest.

"Alright everyone you a'll know the rules, the person who catches the most fish in fifteen minutes wins!" Lewis shouted to the crowd. "If everyone's ready then let's start the clock." The mayor said blowing a whistle and starting a stopwatch in his hand.

The crowd watched patiently as the contestants cast their lines into the icy water below them. It didn't take long before the first fish was hooked, Willy had to fight the large fish as it struggled to escape his line. Willy managed to pull the large fish out of the water and the crowd cheered. Soon the other contestants started getting tugs on their lines and their was suddenly a constant stream of fish being caught by contestants. The gang had to laugh as they watched a fish slip out of Abigail's arms and fall back into the water, much to the dismay of the purple haired girl. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and it felt like no time at all before Lewis blew his whistle once again.

"Alright let's count the fish everyone!" Lewis said walking back onto the ice. "That's...a powerful smell…" Lewis said looking a bit green as he counted each person's bucket of fish. "In third place… with a total of five fish… Pam!" The mayor paused to let the crowd cheer. "In second place… with a total of seven fish… Abigail!" The shorter girl's friends could be heard cheering louder than the others. "And in first place Willy with ten fish!"

Abigail came running over to her friends as the crowd started to split up.

"Nice job Abby, you did really well for your first time." Zelda congratulated.

"Thanks, but II can't believe I dropped one." Abigail grumbled.

"It was pretty funny though." Sam laughed.

"Hey Zelda, I think Lewis is choosing the winner for the ice sculpting competition. You should go and see." Abigail said leaving the boys a little confused.

"Oh thanks, I'll see you guys later!" Zelda said running of to meet up with Leah.

As she approached she could see Lewis handing a blue ribbon to a smiling Leah. Knowing what this meant, Zelda ran up to the artist wrapping her in a big hug from behind.

"Congratulations!" The blonde giggled squeezing Leah tight.

"Thanks, but it's not that much of a competition." Leah laughed. "The only other person competing was robin."

"You still won though!"

"What do you think?" Leah asked.

Zelda realized she hadn't actually taken a good look at the sculpture. The blonde could tell that it was a mermaid sitting on a rock, it wasn't perfect and it was leaning a bit too much to the left but it was still impressive all the same.

"It's beautiful."

"It's a mess" Leah's laughed.

"Then it's a beautiful mess!" Zelda replied giggling.

"Come on man, you're so wrong." Sam said annoyed.

"If you weren't so blind you'd see it too." Sebastian replied calmly.

"What are you guys talking about?" Abigail asked walking up to the two boys.

"Seb thinks that Zelda and Leah are a couple." Sam laughed.

"What!?" Abigail said a little nervously. "What makes you think that?"

"I don't usually like crowds and prefer to hang back, so I usually see things others don't notice." Sebastian explained. "If you look at all the evidence it's pretty obvious they're a couple or at least have a crush on each other."

"This is as ridiculous as the time you said that Mayor Lewis and Marnie were seeing each other."

"Whatever." Sebastian scoffed. "Someday you're going to look like an idiot… well...a bigger idiot." Sebastian said with a smirk starting to walk away.

"Oh yea…" Sam grumbled. "We'll see who looks like an idiot."

Sam bent over and quickly gathered some snow, packing it into his hand and marking a large snowball. Throwing the snowball as hard as he could, Sam hurled it at his friend's head. Unfortunately for Sam, Sebastian was expecting a move like this and ducked just in time. The snowball flew over his head and sailed through the air. Sebastian would have laughed in triumph but before he had the chance he noticed where the snowball was headed. The snow pact projectile whizzed through the air and collided with the back of Zelda's head knocking her to the ground, face first into the snow.

"Oh crap!" Sam gulped.

Leah immediately rushed over to see if the blonde girl was ok but before she could reach her, Zelda slowly began to get up. Turning around, the look on her face read total shock. Zelda tired to see where the projectile came from but all she saw was Sam and Sebastian pointing at each other.

"He did it!" They both shouted, looking worried.

Zelda was still for a moment before a small smirk appeared on her face, quickly she made her own snowball and hurled it in the boy's direction. Sam ducked out the way just in time to avoid the snowball. A look of relief washed over the blonde boy's face before two snowballs flew through the air, smacking both boys in the face. Zelda looked over to see that Leah was the culprit. Laughing, Zelda through another snowball, this time at Abigail hitting her in the arm. No one knew how it happened but it didn't take long before most of the town was involved, everyone sending snowballs through the air at each other. It was a full on war, people used the igloos around them as makeshift bases. Zelda was glad Leah was on her side, as the artist's showed no mercy with her perfect aim. At the end everyone was laughing and cheering.

"Free hot chocolate back at the saloon!" Gus announced to everyone, causing the crowd to shout a 'hooray!'


	19. Chapter: 19 (The First Lesson)

The wooden door to the old tower opened with a loud squeak. Zelda stepped through quickly and the door slammed shut behind her. The castle was nice and warm, a nice change to the long cold walk she had just come from. Rasmodius appeared from his library with a book in his hand.

"Hello Zelda, I hope it wasn't too cold outside." He said with a warm smile.

"It's freezing! But it's nice and warm in here." Zelda said taking off her coat and hat.

"I'm glad you took me up on my offer, it will be nice to pass on some of my knowledge to a younger generation." The wizard said placing his book down on a table.

"Well I wasn't going to pass up the chance to learn magic!" Zelda said excitedly. "But I am a little nervous, I've never done anything like this before."

"Don't be nervous, we'll just take things slowly."

"Ok" Zelda said letting out a deep breath to relax herself.

Rasmodius walked over to the large chalk circle and stood in the middle, beckoning the girl to follow him. The two stood inside the circle parallel to each other, Zelda watched as the wizard closed his eyes and focused. Candles around the circle suddenly lit and slowly began to rise and float around the the two. Zelda watched as the candles danced around the circle, the flames gracefully flickering. Rasmodius gently placed his hands on the the blonde's shoulders and took a deep breath.

"I know I told you about magical aura before but you have not yet learned how to access and harness you aura."

"I remember you told me I have a powerful aura but… I've never felt anything... aura like."

"That's because your aura has yet to become active, this is because you've gone through most of your life without contact or interaction with magic. I'm going to use my aura to send a small amount of energy into your body. The new energy will excite your aura and make it more active."

"Uh.. ok… will it hur-" Zelda started before she was cut off due to shock. It didn't hurt the feeling just surprised her. "Wow." She said as she felt a warmth in her chest.

"Now that your aura is unlocked with practice you'll be able to use your energy to and cast spells." Rasmodius said snapping his fingers, commanding the candles to return to their original place.

"It doesn't feel too different but I definitely feel a small change." Zelda said looking at her hands like she expected some kind of physically change.

Rasmodius smiled and stepped out of the circle, walking towards his small kitchen.

"Now here comes the hard part." Rasmodius said grabbing a large mug and pouring himself some water. Placing a teabag in the water and waving his hand a little, a tablespoon floated into his drink and began to stir on its own. "Practice." He said with a smile as water began to heat up in his glass.

"Practice?"

"See that book on the table over there?" Rasmodius asked pointing at the book he had placed earlier. "I want you to summon it from across the room."

"How do I do that?" Zelda said a little lost.

"Focus on your aura." The wizard explained. "Feel your energy leave your body and wrap itself around the book, once the book has some of your energy you'll be able to move it around the room as if it was an extension of yourself."

"That sounds really complicated." Zelda sighed. "Are you sure I'll be able to do it?"

"Not at first." Rasmodius said taking a sip from his drink. "But it will be entertaining to watch you try."

Zelda sighed and tried to follow the steps the wizard had told her but in her opinion she spent the next fifteen minutes looking like a complete idiot, waving her arms around trying to make the book move. The girl had to blush as she could hear the wizard chuckling at her attempts. It took her about an hour before she made any kind of process. After sometime she could finally feel the book's presence and saw it move an inch towards her.

"I..did..something." Zelda said out of breath. She was surprised at how exhausting this exercise was.

"Good you're starting to get the hang of it." Rasmodius said with an encouraging smile. "We should give it a rest for today just remember, it will become easier over time."

"Cant...wait." Zelda panted.

"In the meantime you can read this book." Rasmodius said calling the book to fly across the room into his hand.

After the wizard handed it over, Zelda took a good look at the book. It was green with a strange symbol embroidered on the front cover. It was thick and the pages were old and tattered like the book had been used for along time.

"Intro to potions?" Zelda said as she read the title on the front cover.

"This book will help you get a foundation in potion making. You should read it in your spare time."

"I hope this will be more interesting than normal homework." Zelda sighed.

"You can use any ingredients here, if you want to practice." Rasmodius said pointing over towards a shelf that held many labeled jars with strange contents. "Just promise me you'll stick to basic potions, higher level potion crafting can be very dangerous if you don't know what you're doing."

"No arguing here!" Zelda said scratching the back of her head. "I'm nervous about starting basic potions, I'm not going anywhere near advanced ones."

The wizard offered the blonde a glass of water to which she gratefully accepted, sitting at the small table info the kitchen she noticed a tiny pine tree in a potted plant, sitting there innocently.

"Cute tree." She said smiling nodding at the tree.

"The mayor hires me to grow one every year, it's a little secret of ours." Rasmodius said with a wink.

The blonde smiled, wondering how many things the wizard might secretly be apart of. She new Lewis hired him to construct the maze on spirits eve but what else did Lewis hire him for?

Zelda gathered her coat and hat by the door, making sure she didn't forget her new book before she left.

"Thanks Ras!" Zelda said waving goodbye. "I'll see you next time!"

"Goodbye my dear and do be careful on your way back." Rasmodius said with a warm smile.

As Zelda left she thought about how thankful she was to the wizard for taking the time to teach her. The blonde was nervous about learning magic but the last thing she wanted to do was let him down, she'd have to practice on her own time. She also was nervous about how she could tell Leah. Zelda didn't want to keep this part of her life a secret but she wasn't sure if Leah would even believe her. Walking through the forest's deep snow she thought about her options. Maybe it would be best keeping it to herself for now...


	20. Chapter: 20 (The Blizzard)

Leah walked quickly towards Zelda's house, visible in the distance. The winds were incredibly strong that day. Leah was actually a little nervous about leaving the house, the wind had been almost shaking her little cabin. She had briefly considered not leaving but the thought of disappointing Zelda made her quickly reconsider. The blonde had gone to the effort of making a home cooked meal to celebrate her birthday. The fact that Zelda had even remembered the artist's birthday was a sweet surprise on its own. Besides Leah would much rather be spending the evening with her girlfriend then trapped in her shack by herself. Braving the outdoor weather, she marched towards the farm.

As Leah reached the porch of the farm house she tried to shake off some of the snow covering her body. She Made sure to Knock extra loudly so that Zelda could hear her, then in a few seconds the door swung open and Leah was ushered in quickly.

"Leah! Are you ok?" Zelda said wrapping the shivering artist in a warm hug. "I was tried to give you a call but when you didn't pick up I was worried you got caught in the storm."

"S.. ?" Leah said through chattering teeth.

"Lewis came by in his truck earlier warning me about the snowstorm that was going to hit tonight, he came buy with some emergency supplies." Zelda explained. "I was going to go look for you but Lewis made me promise not to go out, apparently it's just going to get worse."

"I'm g..g..glad you d..d..didn't it's crazy out t..t..there."

"Let's get your coat off, its covered in snow." Zelda said helping the artist take of her coat. Zelda ran off and quickly returned to wrap Leah in a woolly blanket.

"T.. ." Leah said still shaking.

Zelda led the artist to the couch and sat her down, wrapping her in another hug in hopes to warm the redhead up. Zelda added a small kiss on the cheek as a final touch.

"Better?" Zelda said with a cheery smile.

"Much Better." Leah said smiling with a small blush visible on her cheeks.

"Good! I should call Lewis and tell him you're ok." Zelda said getting up and heading over to the kitchen phone.

"Ok." Leah said hiding her disappointment of blonde getting up.

Leah grabbed the remote resting on the coffee table and turned on the TV. Quickly flipping through the channels she settled on the weather station that was luckily broadcasting news about the storm.

' _It looks as if the storm won't be clearing up anytime soon.' The weather woman said. 'Authorities are urging people to stay inside and if possible in groups, we expect this blizzard to clear up in the next few days.'_

"Next few days?" Leah thought out loud. That meant the artist would be stuck at Zelda's for a few days.

Leah thought about the situation carefully. Of places and people to be stuck with Zelda wasn't exactly at the bottom of her list, the problem was that she didn't bring clothes with her. All of her stuff was back in here cabin which meant Leah didn't really have much of anything.

Zelda came running back, plopping onto the couch next to Leah with a smile.

"Lewis says he's glad to hear your safe, and that he's doing a check on everyone in town." Zelda said happily.

"You know Zel, they're saying the storm won't clear up for a few days." Leah said a little worried.

"Don't worry, you can stay here as long as you need to. We've got plenty of food to last us through the storm." Zelda said calmly.

"I don't really have any spare clothes…"

"You can barrow some of mine, we're the same size."

"Are you sure you're ok with this? I'm not overstaying my…"

"Of course not!" Zelda said cutting of the red heads sentence. "I just hope this doesn't ruin your birthday."

Leah was surprised to hear that blonde was still thinking about her birthday, Leah hadn't even thought about it.

"Being stuck in a cozy house with you?" Leah said nuzzling closer to the blonde. "I think I'll survive." Leah said smiling, pulling the blonde in by her sweater for a kiss.

The two spent a long time on the couch in each other's embrace, only breaking when the blonde heard the ding of a timer coming from the kitchen. Zelda tried to get up but Leah pulled her back down quickly.

"What are you doing?" Zelda giggled.

"Don't go." Leah whined playfully.

"I have to go and check on dinner." Zelda said trying to get up again.

"Noooo don't leeeeeaaave." Leah whined pulling the blonde back down again.

"Leah!" The blonde laughed

"Zelda" the artist replied.

"I need to make sure dinner isn't burning! Then I'll come back."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Zelda confirmed before getting up.

Rushing over to the kitchen she was relieved to find that her roast chicken hadn't burnt. Grabbing some oven mitts Zelda carefully took the chicken out of the oven. Quickly throwing together the rest of the meal, it didn't take long before Zelda had two plates of food. Zelda returned to her girl friend with the their meals giving her a nervous smile as she handed Leah her plate.

"I hope you like it." Zelda said nervously. "I'm not much of a cook."

Leah took a look at the pretty standard meal, the chicken had been served with some nice roast potatoes and carrots. Gravy was poured over the chicken and potatoes.

"It's great thanks." Leah said giving Zelda a reassuring smile. That was before she took a bite. Leah's expression went from a calm to completely blank.

"Oh no." Zelda said sadly watching the artist's face. "You don't like it do you?"

"No this is… really good." Leah said surprised.

"What?"

"I just wasn't expecting it to be this good." Leah said taking another large bite.

"Really?"

"Zel, this has to be the best chicken I've ever had! Seriously what did you do to this?"

"Thanks." Zelda said shyly. "Just a few tricks I picked up online."

"Hey speaking of chicken, are yours going to be ok in the storm?" Leah asked worriedly.

"They should be." Zelda replied. "I turned up the heater in their coop and made sure they had plenty of food to last at least a few days."

"That's good… hey where's Dex?" Leah asked suddenly realising she hadn't seen the cat since she arrived.

"Furball is in my room by the fire place and refuses to move." Zelda explained with a role of her eyes.

The two girls finished their meal relatively quickly, Leah enjoying every last bite. As Zelda brought the dishes into the kitchen Leah went over to her coat and pulled out a DVD she had been keeping in one of her pockets.

"What's that?" Zelda asked returning from the kitchen.

"One of my favourite movies, I know you haven't seen it so I was wondering if you wanted to watch it?"

"Sure! I'll put it on." Zelda said taking the DVD.

As Zelda set up the film, Leah threw herself back on the couch, stretching out with a yawn. After the blonde was done she returned to the couch to find that her girlfriend had laid herself out, leaving no room to sit. Without saying a word Zelda carefully climbed on top of Leah and laid down resting her head on her girlfriends chest. Leah warped her her arms around the blonde's body as the two began to watch the film. It was a soothing feeling, as Zelda would slowly rise and fall from the artist's breathing. The film was a nice heart warming drama with a strong female character as the main protagonist. Zelda was actually really enjoying the movie, she understood why it was one of Leah's favourites. It had everything; drama, comedy, Romance and the blonde was deeply invested in the story. Everything was going perfectly until there was a sudden flicker of the lights and the power suddenly cut off, plunging the two into darkness.

"Uh oh." Leah said. "The power must have gone out."

"Oh no!" Zelda whined "Now I won't know how it ends."

"Sorry Zel, I guess we'll have to wait till we get the power back."

"But that could be ages! And I'll be up all night thinking about what happens next."

Leah let out a chuckle, one that made Zelda smile.

"Will you tell me the rest of the story?" The blonde asked looking into Leah's eyes, even in the dark the two could just barely make out each other's eyes.

"Me? Really?" Leah laughed.

"Yea! What happens next?"

Leah paused as she remembered the rest of the story, choosing her words carefully Leah began to tell the rest of the story. Zelda listened to every word, taking the story in with as much wonder as when she watched the film. Leah enjoyed explaining some of the jokes the most because it made Zelda laugh. When the artist final finished her tale the blonde let out a large happy sigh.

"That's a good ending." Zelda said softly. "Although I wish that Rachel ended up with someone, I feel like she got a pretty poor deal."

"I'm glad you liked it, wish you could've seen the ending though."

"I think I like it more, hearing it this way." The blonde said snuggling closer to the artist. "Did you have a good birthday?" she said closing her eyes.

"The best." The artist said.

Leah carefully picked up the blanket that Zelda had given her earlier, off the floor and threw it over the them. Zelda didn't seem to notice and Leah assumed she was already asleep. Giving her girlfriend one more caring squeeze, the artist closed her eyes and drifted off into a peaceful slumber.

(Author's Notes)

Sorry about taking so long again with these chapters, I have been dealing with my final exams. In fact my last one is in a few days so I should probably be studying for it instead of writing... but whatever! :D


	21. Chapter: 21 (The Blizzard II)

Leah woke to the sound of steady breathing, her eyes remained closed as she tried to fight her slip from her slumber. Her senses coming back to her as she realised there was something warm on top of her. Unlike a blanket it was heavier and much softer than the artist would have expected. Eventually curiosity won out and Leah opened her eyes to find see her girlfriend still fast asleep. The artist smiled as she remembered the events of the previous night. Zelda's face was extremely peaceful and Leah had to stop herself from gushing over how cute she looked. Brushing a few strands of hair out of the blond's face she smiled as Zelda began to slowly stir.

"Hmmm?" Zelda mumbled. As she slowly opened her eyes.

"Morning sleepy head." Leah greeted.

"What?" Zelda yawned confused still dazed from her sleep, causing Leah to laugh.

Zelda's pupils final focused and was able to see her girlfriend's smiling face.

"Hey" Zelda said mirroring the artist's smile.

"Hi." Leah laughed. "Did you sleep ok?"

"Mmhmm." Zelda hummed nodding her head. "Your comfy."

The two shared a laugh and cuddle for a bit longer before the lights suddenly gave a flicker and turned on.

"Looks like the powers back." Leah said looking around the room as electronics began to turn on.

"I should give Lewis a call and see what's happening." Zelda said giving Leah a quick kiss before getting up.

Leah rose from the couch herself and walked over to the window, taking a peek out side she could see that it was still pretty windy outside, snow had piled up around the house and had constructed a natural barrier in front of the door.

Zelda picked up the phone in the kitchen, happy to once again here the reassuring dial tone. Punching in Lewis's house phone number she eagerly waited a response. Unfortunately there was no answer and Zelda was sent to voicemail. Leaving a quick message Zelda hung up disappointed.

"No one's home." Zelda called from the kitchen. "Maybe he's doing another run in his truck."

"Try calling Marnie's place." Leah responded. "I have a feeling he's there."

Zelda was confused but went along with Leah's hunch, dialling up the rancher's number.

It didn't take long before she got an answer and heard Marnie's familiar voice.

'Hello?' Zelda heard Marnie say on the other end.

"Hey Marnie it's Zelda." The blonde greeted happily.

'Oh Zelda dear! Glad to hear your ok.'

"You too, I was just calling to ask if Lewis had passed by recently? I know he's going around town to check on people."

'Oh he's… actually… here now… uh I'll put him on.' Marnie said nervously.

Zelda was surprised to learn that Lewis was their, thinking that it must have been really lucky timing on her part. Looking over at Leah who gave her a all knowing smile and nod made her even more curious.

'Hello? Zelda?' She heard Lewis say.

"Hey Lewis. I gave your house phone a call and you weren't there but Leah suggested you might be at Marnie's."

'Lucky guess I suppose.' Lewis laughed nervously.

"I just wanted to find out if the power out I experienced was town wide and if anyone still doesn't have power?"

'Yes it was a town wide blackout, I think a tree branch must have shook one of our main power cables. Luckily some workers were able to get it back up and running. Everyone should have power now and I was just about to do a town wide run.'

"Ok that's good to hear." Zelda said a bit relieved. "By the way did you make sure Linus is ok? I hate to think he was caught out in the storm."

'Don't worry he's staying at the saloon with Gus till the storm blows over.' Lewis said calmly.

"Ok thanks Lewis. Tell Shane I said hi."

'Sure thing.'

The two said their goodbyes and Zelda hung up happily, although she was still curious as to how Leah knew he'd be at the ranch. The blonde turned to Leah who still retained her smug smile.

"So how did you know that Lewis was at Marnie's?"

Leah smug smile widened a little before she spoke. "As Marnie's closest neighbour I've noticed that Lewis makes quite a lot of visits to Marnie's house."

Zelda remained confused unsure of what Leah was implying.

"What do you mean?" Zelda asked.

Leah had to giggle at the innocent look on the blonde's face. "I often see him leaving in the morning." She said with a sly wink.

Zelda stood still, processing the information for a few seconds before suddenly realising what the artist was saying.

"Oh!" Zelda said in shock, a large blush appearing on her face.

"Your so cute." Leah teased trapping the blonde in a hug.

"Nnnnngggmm" Zelda moaned in embarrassment as she tried to wiggle out of her girlfriends grip to no avail, her face going completely red.

"You're so innocent." Leah said laughing.

"Stooooooop!" Zelda whined.

Leah didn't let go and kept the blonde trapped, milking her embarrassment for as long as possible. When Leah finally let go Zelda headed for the TV to check on any news about the blizzard. Leah turned her attention towards the kitchen phone.

"Can I use the phone? My family must have heard about the blizzard and might be starting to worry about me." Leah asked

"Of course! Go ahead." Zelda replied. As she reached for the remote.

Zelda heard Leah pick up the phone and start dialling, the blonde new she was being nosey but she couldn't help but tune out the Tv and listen to Leah's conversation.

"Hey Mom it's Leah." She heard the artist say. "I… Ya I'm fine… the storm should only last a few days…. I'm staying with someone….who?...uh… a friend…."

Zelda's emotions took a bit of turn when she heard Leah refer to her as a friend. The blonde did like hearing Leah call her, her girlfriend but at the same time she was still nervous about coming out to the public. Although she had to admit the more time she spent with Leah the more confident she became about being herself.

"Yea I'll be careful…" She heard Leah continue. "Alright...yea…ok...I promise...ok...tell dad and the dork I said hi...ok..bye."

Zelda heard a click of the phone as Leah hung up and soon after the artist reappeared in the living room.

"Is everything ok with your family?" Zelda asked.

"Yep, my mom was glad I gave her a call. She got worried when she couldn't reach me on my house phone." Leah explained. "Do you think I could use your shower?" Leah asked hesitantly.

"Be my guest." Zelda said pointing towards the bathroom. "I'll come lay out some fresh clothes for you."

"Thanks, your the best" Leah said happily before running into the bathroom.

As Leah entered the relatively small bathroom she took in her surroundings. It was pretty standard; with a sink, medicine cabinet, a toilet and bathtub shower combo. Leah had to laugh as she used the mirror on the front of the medicine cabinet to take a good look at herself. The artist's hair was even more of a mess than usual, sticking up in a few weird ways due to a small case of bed head. Stripping down out of her clothes Leah started the shower's water, letting it get nice and warm before stepping in and drawing the shower curtain. After a few minutes there was a knock on the door, Leah made sure the curtain was properly drawn before yelling 'Come in!' The artist could hear Zelda nervously enter, and blushed at thought of having nothing but the shower curtain between her and the blonde.

"I...uh...just brought you some clothes, and a fresh towel." Zelda said shyly. "I'm leave them on the sink counter."

"Thanks Zel." Leah called as she heard the blonde leave.

Finishing up quickly the artist stepped out clean and feeling fresh. Drying herself with a the towel Zelda had provided she noticed the clothes Zelda had given her. It was a soft white shirt with long black sleeves, and a pair of black leggings. As Leah picked up the shirt she noticed something was in between the two pieces of clothing. The artist blushed as she realised Zelda had laid out some underwear as well. As she got dressed a feeling of dread washed over Leah as she tried on Zelda's bra to find that it was one size too big for her. Groaning in humiliation Leah decided to just reuse her old one and finished changing as fast as possible.

When she was done she checked herself in the mirror to make sure she looked ok. She looked fine but decided that brushing her hair wouldn't hurt and tried to look around the room for a hair brush.

"Hey Zelda? Do you have a hair brush I can barrow?" Leah called out.

"Yea I think I left it in the medicine cabinet!" She heard Zelda shout back.

Opening the medicine cabinet she scanned the shelves until her eyes fell upon a small pill bottle labeled 'Anti-Depressants'. Leah was caught off guard by the pill bottle and had to reread the title a few more times before she could really register it. Picking it up she inspected it closer noticing it was half full. Zelda had never mentioned she was on medication or that she was struggling with depression before and Leah felt a bit hurt that the blonde would keep something so important a secret from her. The artist was left in deep thought until Zelda's calls from outside broke her trance.

"Nevermind I found it!" Zelda shouted.

Leah stepped out of the bathroom with the pill bottle in her hand and a concerned look on her face.

"Hey what's this?" Leah asked holding up the bottle so that Zelda could see.

Zelda's smile disappeared from her face as she turned around to see what the artist was talking about.

"Thats nothing!" Zelda said, quickly rushing over to try and snatch the pills from Leah's hands. The artist was too quick though and moved it out of reach just in time.

"Why would you keep something like this a secret from me?" Leah said a little more accusingly then she meant to, taking a step back to keep the pills out of the blonde's grasp. "Are you not happy?"

"Come on Leah give it back." Zelda said taking another step towards the artist.

"I want to talk about it!" Leah said agitated. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

"There's nothing to tell!" Zelda said getting up set. "I haven't take them in a long time!"

"Really?"

"YES REALLY!" Zelda shouted, tears starting to fall from her cheeks. "I stopped taking them a few weeks after I moved here and I haven't taken one since!"

Leah suddenly felt extremely guilty the last thing she intended was to make Zelda upset, it broke her heart to see the the blonde cry.

"I'm sorr…" Leah tried to say but she was cut off by the blonde.

"Of course I'm happy here! I'm happier than I've ever been in my hole life. Moving here was the best thing that ever happened to me but, my life before this wasn't exactly perfect! You wouldn't understand what it was like growing up in an orphanage and being bullied all through high school. I only had one friend in the world and it was thanks to him and those pills that I'm still even here."

Zelda was suddenly wrapped in an unexpected hug from Leah, her first thought was to fight it but the blonde couldn't bring herself to push the artist away. Accepting the hug Zelda cried into Leah's shoulder, hot tears pouring down her face. Zelda could tell Leah was crying as well, hearing the artist produce her own sobs. The two stood their for a long time, it almost felt like hours, until the final broke apart. Leah held Zelda's face in her hands and looked deep into her eyes.

"I'm sorry." Leah said "I didn't mean to be so inconsiderate. I was just worried that I wasn't making you happy."

"Of course you do, you big dummy." Zelda said, tears still falling down her face. "You're one of the best things that have ever happened to me."

"Your one of the best things that have ever happened to me too." Leah said with a small smile.

"I thought about throwing the pills away but every time I do I just get scared, scared that one day I'll wake up from this dream and realise I'm alone again."

"You won't…" Leah said holding Zelda close. "I promise you'll never be alone again."


	22. Chapter:22(The Feast Of The Winter Star)

A quick word before you begin:

The author's notes at the end will contain not only notes on the chapter but information about my writing process, future storylines, and the future usage of characters such as Emily and Haley.

-Enjoy!

The fight aside, both Zelda and Leah had enjoyed spending a few days cooped up together. Leah still felt guilty about how she had made Zelda cry and kept trying to make it up to the blonde, no matter how many time Zelda had said she didn't have to. The rest of the time Leah had spent at Zelda's she wouldn't let her girlfriend lift a finger and treated her like a queen. Zelda protested at first but Leah wouldn't let up so the blonde reluctantly accepted Leah's (almost overwhelming) care.

A few weeks had passed since the blizzard and the town had more than recovered. It was good that their was no major damages caused because the town began to focus on the Feast of the Winter Star. It must have been Lewis' favourite time of year because he made sure the town really went all out. Decorations hung from all around in the town and a giant christmas tree was erected in the middle of town square. The tree was beautifully decorated with ornaments and tin foil. The tree was so massive and beautiful that Zelda had a suspicion that a familiar wizard was the one who set it up, remembering a small tree that he had been growing in his kitchen.

Twas the night before christmas and it was a tradition for the whole town to come together and celebrate in town. Families could book tables to eat a meal together and single people were welcome to help themselves to the feast and mingle around. There were a bunch of small standing tables for thoughts who didn't book a family table. The Feast of the Winter Star was a special festival only held in Stardew Valley, people from all over used to travel to feast and see a special star that only appeared on christmas eve and could only be seen in the Valley.

Zelda was entranced by the atmosphere in the night time air, the town had a magical glow thanks to the lights strung up around town. The Feast was set out on a long table, a buffet of food and desserts were spread as far as the eye could see. The weather was also perfect for the occasion, it wasn't as cold as usual making celebrating outside much more enjoyable. Zelda nervously clutched the present in her hands to her chest. Lewis had explained that it was a tradition for everyone in town to be assigned a random person they had to give a gift to. Zelda had received in a letter that her she had was Emily's secret gifter. The blonde was really worried about being Emily's secret because other than a the basics she didn't really know much about the blue haired girl. Zelda spoke to her most at the saloon when she was manning the bar for Gus, the blonde remembered Emily mentioning something about her wanting become a fashion designer someday so she had gotten her a book about famous fashion designers and designs that had been used throughout history.

Looking around Zelda noticed Emily and her younger sister Haley standing on one side of the large tree, looking up at the large star placed on top.

"Hey Emily, hey Haley." Zelda greeted shyly.

"Hi Zelda!" Emily said merrily. "Merry christmas."

"Let me guess you're one of our secret gifters?" Haley said eyeing the present clutched in Zelda's arms.

"Ya I'm Emily's." Zelda said nervously. "Here I hope you like it." She said handing it over.

Emily began to unwrap the gift and the blonde was relieved to see a look of delight on the young woman's face as she saw what it was.

"Thanks Zelda this is really interesting." Emily said flipping open the book to take a few quick glances of the book.

"Hmmp" Haley said with a eyeroll. "At least It's better than what Sam gave me."

"What's that?" Zelda asked.

"He got lazy this year and gave me some christmas decorations made of holly, pretty sure he pinched these from around town." Haley said sighing in annoyance.

"Well I don't know about that…" Zelda chuckled trying to defend her friend, although the blonde knew fully well that this was just the type of prank the boy would pull. Lewis was probably too busy to notice a few decorations missing.

"I just hope that a new camera lens is waiting for me under the tree." Haley said hopefully

"Camera lens? You like photography?"

"Yea, I post all my photos online and I have a large following on social media." Haley said confidently.

"Really? That's really cool!"

"Well I thought if I was going to be stuck here in this small town I might as well make some use out of the scenery."

"I wish you'd see more to this place as more than just a way to farm 'likes' on your social media platform." Emily said shaking her head. "There's a whole lot more to this place you'd see if you weren't so focused on-"

"Don't even start this, Emily!" Haley interrupted, causing Emily to huff.

Zelda could tell that this was something that the two siblings were better of dealing with themselves and quickly said her goodbyes. Zelda headed towards the bouffay to help herself to some food. As she was helping herself to some turkey she felt a tap on the shoulder, turning around she was surprised to see it was Shane.

"Hi Shane!" Zelda said happily with her trade mark smile.

"Hey Zelda." Shane said with a roll of his eyes and a smirk. "Here this is for you." He said handing her a small package wrapped in yellow paper.

Zelda eagerly took the package and began tearing the wrapping paper off excitedly. Inside was a plastic container with a home cooked meal inside. They were hot peppers with melted cheese stuffed inside.

"It's not much but I hope you enjoy it." Shane said with a shrug.

Zelda smiled at scruffy man and wrapped him in an unexpected hug.

"Thanks Shane, I'm sure I'll love it." The blonde said.

Shane tried to hide his small smile but he couldn't do it and walked off to rejoin his family after helping himself to some of the bouffay. Zelda had helped herself to her own portion of food finding that almost all of it was delicious, the blonde noticed that the punch had a strange taste to it but decided to ignore it thinking it must have been some new invention from Gus. Grabbing another glass of punch, she looked around for her girlfriend finally spotting her and heading over happily. Leah was at a standing table with Gus and Elliot. Walking over she greeted everyone.

"Merry christmas everyone." Zelda said joining the table, and placing herself next to Leah.

"Hi." Leah said looking extremely happy to see the blonde.

"Evening Zelda." Elliot said giving the blonde a smile. "What's that in your hand?"

"Shane gave this to me, he was my secret gifted this year." Zelda explained. "Did you guys get your gifts yet?"

"Yep." Leah said with a nod. "Robin gave me some new carving tools, the good stuff."

"Pam gave me a coupon for joja mart." Elliot said with a sigh.

"Penny gave me a new cookbook full of new recipes." Gus chuckled. "Looks like it's not the best year for you." Gus laughed patting Elliott on the back.

"Anything special anyone's thankful for?" Leah asked the group.

"I'm thankful for the busy year I've had at the saloon and I hope for even more in the future." Gus said with a hearty laugh.

"I'm thankful for all the inspiration nature provided for my writing, all of it was truly a gift." Elliott said not noticing Leah's eye roll.

"Well I'm thankful for everyone making me feel welcome this year and for all the friends I've made who make me feel loved." Zelda said reaching under the table and giving Leah's hand a squeeze.

Leah smiled at zelda and squeezed back letting her now that she was thankful for her as well.

Leah never knew it was possible but she thought she might actually die of boredom. Her eyes were half open and it was a struggle to stay upright as she fought off the urge to fall asleep. Gus had been telling her and Elliott about how he made candy canes for the past fifteen minutes strate. She was impressed with Elliott's composure even though she knew he must be struggling just as much as she was. Gus was usually a lot of fun to talk to but when it came to him talking about candy cane making he was just so… boring. He droned on and on and on, with no end in sight. Leah wished her girlfriend would come back and rescue her from her prison, but the blonde had disappeared to get more punch and must have stopped to talk to someone on the way. Leah let out a sigh before she noticed Zelda practically bouncing back, with a huge smile on her face.

"Hey!" Zelda greeted wrapping Leah in an unexpected hug.

"Hey yourself." Leah chuckled, thanking Yoba for hearing her prayers. "What's got you so happy?"

"I don't know!" The blonde giggled.

Leah suddenly had to grab hold of the blonde to help her keep her balance which she seemed to be having trouble keeping.

"Woah, Zelda are you ok?" Leah said worriedly.

"Mhmm I feel great!" Zelda said still swaying slightly.

Leah noticed she had another glass of punch and watched her drink it quickly. The sight strangely reminded Leah, the blonde had drank quite a lot of the punch that evening.

"How much punch have you had?" Leah said laughing a little nervously.

"I don't know? A lot I think." Zelda said laughing. "It's got a really strange taste this time though."

"Gus did you do something different with the punch?" Leah asked holding Zelda up to stop her from falling over.

"No, just the usual." He replied confused.

"Now that you mention it I remember Pam telling me she had put something 'special' in the punch." Elliott said remembering his conversation from earlier. "She might have spiked it for fun."

"That's not good." Gus said laughing. "Zelda doesn't drink!"

Leah looked back at her girlfriend who seemed oblivious to the conversation they were having, instead she seemed entertained by the Christmas lights strung up around the town square. The artist noticed her cheeks had reddened and the blonde's overly happy expression confirmed what Leah's fear. Zelda was drunk.

Elliott and Gus shared a laugh as Leah struggled to keep Zelda upright. Leah glared at the two thinking that this was a much more serious situation than the two were making it out to be.

"I better get her home." Leah said directing the blonde in the direction of her farm.

"Good luck." Elliott chuckled, waving the two goodbye.

Leah found that getting Zelda home was a lot more tricky than she thought it would be. It was a lot like dealing with a five year old. Zelda was being extremely clingy and when she wasn't trying to wrap herself around the artist she was running around pretending she was flying.

"Look I'm an airplane!" Zelda said laughing.

"You're a very good airplane sweetie." Leah said with a sigh, she probably would have found the whole situation funnier if she wasn't so worried.

Leah was glad that the path to Zelda's had snow piles on the edge because the blonde would often land in the soft snow when she lost her balance. When she finally got the blonde to the porch of her house Leah felt a small bit of relief hit her.

"Ok sweetie I need your keys." Leah said to Zelda who was currently sitting on the floor.

"Why?" Zelda asked with a large smile.

"Because I need it to unlock the door." Leah explained gently as if she was talking to a child.

"Oh right!" Zelda said excitedly, fishing out her keys from her pocket clumsily.

After unlocking the door Leah helped the blonde inside, careful not to let her fall over. Zelda flopped onto the couch with a large jump. Leah noticed the blonde unsuccessfully trying to kick her boots off and helped her. After putting away the girls shoes Leah went to Zelda's bedroom and found her pajamas for her. When she came back into the living room she saw her girlfriend on the floor playing with a confused looking Dex. The cat turned to look at Leah as if he was looking for an answer.

"She's drunk." She said to the cat who meowed back in response.

"Who's drunk?" Zelda asked confused.

"You are, silly." Leah said smirking.

"Nice try Leah, but I don't drink." Zelda said with huge smile on her face.

"Let's get you in your pajamas." Leah said trying not to laugh.

"Are you going to help me." The blonde said with a sly wink.

Leah suddenly blushed heavily at what the blonde was implying but shook of her embarrassment.

"You're not that drunk." Leah said helping the blonde up and handing over the pajamas.

"Fine." Zelda pouted before starting to take off her pants.

"No! No!" Leah shouted Turning red and covering her eyes. "Not in here!"

"It's my house and I can change where I want!" Leah heard the blonde whine.

"Fine, just tell me when you're done." Leah said with a sigh, keeping her eyes covered.

The artist couldn't deny that she was extremely tempted to take a peek but her morals wouldn't allow for it. Zelda wasn't in her right mind and Leah would never be able to forgive herself if she took advantage of the blonde in her vulnerable state.

"Done." Zelda chimed after a while.

Leah slowly opened her eyes and was relieved to find that the blonde wasn't lying. Pulling her by the hand she led her girlfriend to the bedroom and tucked her in.

"But I'm not tired!" Zelda whined.

"Well I am, so I'll be on the couch if you need me." Leah said, but before she could move away from the bed the blonde grabbed her arm forcing her to stay.

"Wait!" Zelda whined. "Will you stay with me till I fall asleep?"

"Ok." Leah said with a small sigh, as she sat on the edge of the bed.

Leah placed her hand on the blonde's head and gentle stroked her forehead with her thumb lovingly.

"Sorry we missed seeing the star." Zelda said softly. "Please don't hate me."

Leah only chuckled, wishing she had been recording the blonde all night. "I could never hate you, don't be silly. There's always next year."

The blonde slowly closed her eyes, as she felt like the world had suddenly begun spinning around her. Zelda hummed gently as she felt her only saving grace at the moment was Leah sitting with her.

"Does the world normally spin so fast?" Zelda asked keeping her eyes closed.

"Only when you're drunk." Leah sighed. "Sorry Zel, I should have noticed something was off sooner."

"Thanks for taking care of me." Zelda said taking hold of Leah's hand. "I love you." The blonde whispered before going quite.

Leah blushed but smile as she looked over her now slumbering girlfriend. She couldn't help but watch her for the longest time. "I love you too." The artist said before kissing the blonde's forehead.

Leah heard awoke to the sound of a large groan coming from the bedroom. Sleepily climbing off the couch she went to check up on the blonde, letting out a large yawn as she did. Leah had to watched as Zelda slowly turned her head and opened her eyes to see who had walked up to the bed.

"Leah?" She moaned in confusion. "What happened last night? And why do I feel like I'm dying?"

"Someone spiked the punch last night and you had a little too much to drink." Leah explained gently.

Zelda's eyes widened with horror as she realised what had happened.

"Oh no." Zelda said hiding her face in her hands.

"Oh yes." Leah teased with a laugh.

"Did I make a fool of myself?" Zelda asked worriedly.

"Don't worry only Gus and Elliot saw, I got you out pretty fast when I realised."

"Oh man! I bet I looked like a total idiot."

"Don't worry Zelda you're a cute drunk, and an even cuter airplane." Leah said with a laugh.

"What do you mean?" Zelda asked nervously, wondering if she really wanted to know the answer.

Leah began reenacting Zelda's airplane performance much to the blonde's horror.

"Look I'm an airplane." Leah teased as she continued to run around the room in circles.

Zelda pulled the covers over her head to try and hide her embarrassment.

 **-Notes From Author-**

Hey guys so a few things I wanted to say, first off I don't mind revealing that Zelda's 'friend' mentioned in the last chapter was in fact Link and I intend to use him later as well. A quick note on this chapter is that I had a hard time deciding on how christmas works in the world of Stardew Valley. In the game Christmas is never mentioned and only 'The Feast of the Winter Star' is ever spoken about. This is most likely the game creator attempting to make the game as relatable as possible and not alienating anyone with different religions or traditions. Originally I was going to fallow the game and not mention christmas at all, thinking that the entire world called it 'The Feast of the Winter Star'. However when I looked closer into the text and I realised the reason its called that is because of a special star that **only** appears in the valley which means that the rest of the world must celebrate the holidays normally.

So I wanted to explain how I write so you guys understand my process. I am actually four chapters ahead of whats posted here. The reason for this is because I like to give my self a safety net. The last thing I want to do is find my self in the middle of writing a chapter and realise that I've rewritten my self in a past chapter. I hate being stuck with something I cant change cause its already posted. This way I can just make sure everything is concise. (I know you can edit chapters you post but that might make it confusing to anyone who's already read the chapter)

Now here's what I am sure a lot of you have been waiting for and why many of you are actually reading my boring rant: the inclusion of Haley and Emily. I do read all of my reviews, Thank you guys for writing them by the way it really means a lot to me and I love hearing what you guys have to say about recent chapters (shout out to ShiroPL). Now I know you guys want to see Haley and Emily in the story which is why I extended their brief appearance in this chapter from a small cameo to a full on conversation that hopefully sets something up in the future. I want you guys to know that I have planned for a long time to include them and will be doing so in the future. No doubt they will play a key role during Leah's second art show.

Thank you all for reading and I hope you all are enjoying the story so far, I really enjoy writing it. Its been pretty fluffy so far and as a waring I do plan on having so big drama and dark themes in the (possibly far?) future centred around a certain blonde's past. No spoilers though!

-Matt


	23. Chapter: 23 (The Return Of Spring)

Zelda knocked happily on Leah's door awaiting an answer eagerly. Spring had returned to the Valley bringing beautiful blue skies and green grass with it. The petals of flowers would blow in the wind and fill the air, creating a magical atmosphere in the forest. Animals had come out of hiding and were back running around and scurrying through bushes. Leah's art show was in a few days and the blonde was excited to see her girlfriend's hard work pay off. Leah opened the door and smiled brightly when she realised it was Zelda.

"Hey, what's got you so happy?" Leah said noticing the blonde's smile was a little bigger than usual.

"I've got some exciting news." Zelda said happily. "Can I come in?"

"Nope." Leah said stepping out and closing the door behind her, careful to not let Zelda see anything inside.

"Aww come on!"

"Nice try Zel but all my finished projects are in there and like I already said, I want them to be a surprise."

"Don't I get a sneak peak? You know, special girlfriend pillages?" Zelda said getting close to Leah and giving her a kiss, hoping it would persuade her.

"Not this time."

"Fine but I really do have exciting news." Zelda said giving up.

"Let's go for a walk then and you can tell me." Leah said offering the blonde her hand.

Zelda happily took the artist's hand and the two walked into the forest together. The two walked until they reached the side of a lake, with a large familiar tree near by. Taking a seat under the tree, Leah looked at the blonde lovingly. This had to be the pairs favourite spot in the forest. Other than the fact that it was a beautifully spot with a perfect amount of shade, it was also the place they had first met. The two loved to take walks and hang out under the tree, spending time with each other whenever they could.

"So what's the big news?" Leah asked.

"Oh right!" Zelda said, remembering. "Here read this." The blonde handed over a letter she had received in the mail.

Leah read the letter carefully, her eyes widening as she did.

' _Dear Miss Hyrule_

 _We are writing to inform you that we will be featuring you and your farm in an upcoming piece about new farmers and their how they adapt to country life. We are very impressed with your quick progress and would like to send a reporter over for a quick interview. Please give us a call on the number provided if your interested._

 _-The Puffington Post'_

"Wow, Zelda this is incredible!" Leah shouted, pulling her girlfriend in for a hug. "I'm so proud of you!"

"It's pretty crazy right?" Zelda laughed taking in the artist's affection.

"It's not crazy, you've worked really hard and your farm has come a long way." Leah said giving the blonde a quick kiss. "You deserve some recognition."

"Thanks" Zelda giggled smiling shyly as Leah unleashed an assault of tiny kisses on her face. "All your hard work is about to pay off too, with the art show just around the corner."

"I wanted to talk to you about the art show actually." Leah said a little hesitantly.

"Whats up?"

"Well…" Leah said nervously. "I have this speech planned… and in it I say thank you to everyone who helped me… and I know it would be kinda scary...but I was hoping I could say thank you to... my girlfriend."

Zelda backed away from Leah in shock, surprised that the artist was suggesting that the two come out together. Leah looked extremely worried as Zelda backed away, fearing that she may have scared Zelda off.

"I don't know…" Zelda said shyly unable to look the artist in the eye.

"Think about the people who already know, Penny and Abigail, they've been nothing but supportive. I'm sure that the rest of the town will also be."

"Do you?" Zelda said sadly. "Predicting a town's reaction based off of two people doesn't sound very logical."

"I know you're scared." Leah said closing the distance between the two and placing her hands on the blonde's shoulders. "I scared too. You're the first girl I've ever loved, I never even new I was bi until I met you. I'm nervous about everyone finding out as much as you are but I've been living here for almost three years now and I know that this town loves all of its residents, no matter who they are and I think you do too."

"Yea I guess I've know for a while now that everyone in town would probably be ok with who I am… but...It won't be just the town, there will be strangers from other villages as well. If we do this then we'll be officially out, no hiding or take backs. If we do this then we're out for good."

"As scared as I am, I'm willing to take that risk." Leah said confidently with a smile, wrapping her arms around the blonde.

Leah quickly pulled the blonde into her lap so that the artist was now cradling the blonde lovingly.

"I admire your confidence, but you've never had to endure any negativity about your sexuality before."

"Maybe you're right but I went through some of my own hardships you know." Leah said with a compassionate smile.

"Like what?" Zelda asked curiously, looking up at her.

"Well back in highschool I used to date… a lot." Leah said scratching the back of her head nervously. "I was kind of finding myself at the time and because I was so self conscious about my passion for art I kinda fell for any guy who was willing to give me a compliment, even if they were total jerks. Pretty pathetic right?"

"No, I don't think so." Zelda said softly.

Leah was actually surprised to hear this, from the look on Zelda's face she could the blonde was being serious. Leah could tell that even her parents were a little disappointed and worried about her at the time although they tried to hide it, she didn't blame them. looking back at her younger self, Leah could understand how her actions could be perceived as immature.

"Really? Cause you'ed be the first." Leah said with a nervous chuckle. "I was kinda known as the school slut."

"I understand what it's like…" Zelda said softly. "To have low self esteem and to fall for someone because of it."

"You do?" Leah asked a little hopefully, she had never spoken to someone who had truly understood how she felt at the time.

"In my high school there was a group of girl's popular girls who used to pick on me a lot." Zelda said sadly. "They were almost like a gang and their leader, Jennifer really had it out for me. They were the ones who used to shove me into lockers all the time."

Zelda could tell that Leah was getting upset, a lot like how Abigail had reacted when hearing about her high school bullies.

"One day a really pretty girl transferred to our school." Zelda continued. "I quickly developed a crush on her but I didn't think much of it, it wasn't the first time I had crushed on someone in school. Considering my social status of being the local loser I was surprised when she actually started talking to me one day. She walked up to me after class and said I looked cute and if I would go out with her sometime. She kept complimenting me… and it felt really good, you know? I was so overjoyed that a girl I liked was actually asking me out so I blindly accepted." Zelda let out a large sigh. "I should have seen it coming, I barely new anything about her."

"Seen what coming?" Leah asked worriedly, already getting the sense that the blonde's story was about to take the turn for the worse.

"My best friend even tried to warn me about her, he said he didn't have a good feeling about her and that I shouldn't trust her. Although I was to excited to see reason. Before the new girl asked me out I was seriously starting to worry I would be alone forever. I spent all morning getting ready and trying on outfits, I was so excited to go on my first official date. She took me to the park in the evening were I thought I was going to have my first kiss but…"

Zelda hesitated as she began to cry softly. Leah wasn't sure what to say but she held the blonde closer trying to comfort her the best she could.

"What happened?" Leah asked gently.

"It was a setup. Jennifer and her gang had talked the new girl into helping them pull it off, no doubt for some kind of boost in popularity. They pushed me into the pond and recorded everything. The sent the video to everyone in school."

Leah was so shocked at hearing this she clenched her fists tightly in anger. Her feelings were a mixture of pain at the thought of a heartbroken Zelda and of pure rage towards the people who did this to her. Tears began to flow from her own eyes, Leah wasn't sure if they were from the sadness or the rage but it felt like a mixture of the two.

"Those… BASTARDS!" Leah said holding a sniffing Zelda tightly in her arms. "How could they do something so horrible?"

"It's ok." Zelda said wiping away her tears. "It's the past…"

"NO It's not ok!" Leah said almost shaking with anger. "What they did is unforgivable, and I swear if anyone ever tries to hurt you again I'll beat them to a pulp!"

Zelda was surprised to hear Leah talking like this, she wasn't much of a violent person. However the blonde did notice a sense of protectiveness Leah displayed when she was around her, a trait the blonde felt was extremely sweet.

"Thank you Leah…" Zelda said Placing a hand on the artist cheek, calming her down a little.

"It means a lot to me to hear you say that."

"Well… It means a lot that you told me all this." Leah said wiping her own tears away. "I know you don't like talking much about the past."

"Ever since my experience at high school I've been terrified to come out… but if I'm with you… then I guess no matter what happens I'll be ok." Zelda said with a nervous smile.

"Really?" Leah said surprised.

"Let's do it." Zelda said with a smile, her cheeks still wet from her tears.

The two wrapped each other in a tight hug. Zelda could smell the familiar scent of pine wood on leah's shirt as the artist held her close. Right then and there she felt completely safe, as if nothing on earth could ever hurt her again. Zelda thought for a moment in the embrace of the artist. If they were coming out with their secret, then Zelda might aswell come out with one of her's.

"Why are we going in here?" Leah asked curiously as the blonde led her into the old community center.

"You'll see." The blonde said calmly.

Leah was surprised when she heard Zelda wanted to show her something, especially when she was brought to such a strange location. The blonde led her into the building, closing the old wooden door behind them. Leah was shocked to find the inside held an almost magical atmosphere. Light seeped in through the boarded up windows creating light streams that made the room sparkle and glow. The room should have felt creepy but instead felt peaceful and calm, like it had a life force of its own. The artist noticed a small hut made from branches and leaves in the corner of the room.

"For an old abandoned building it's surprisingly nice in here." Leah said looking around the room.

Zelda nodded with a smile shyly, she was a little nervous about what Leah's reaction was going to be.

"You know if you were anyone else I would be a little nervous about being led to a abandoned building." Leah said with a laugh. "So what is it?"

"This." Zelda said giving a long soft one note whistle that filled the room.

"You wanted to show me your whistle?" Leah said confused before she noticed small apple like creatures begin to appear around the room.

The Junimos appeared out of thin air. Most on the floor but some appeared on shelves, peering down at the two girls with interest. Many ran up to Zelda looking up at her with joy, happy to see her return. Some looked at Leah curiously, wondering who their blonde friend had brought with her.

"Z..Zelda…" Leah stuttered in shock. "What are these things?"

"Don't be scared." Zelda said letting one climb onto her hand so she could pick it up. "They won't hurt you."

Leah relaxed as she saw how friendly the creatures were being, bending down she took a closer look at one. The artist gently poked one and was surprised to find that the creature seemed to enjoy it, making sounds that she could only guess were laughter.

"What are these things?" Leah repeated, a lot more relaxed this time then before.

"Their called the Junimos." Zelda said calmly,taking a seat on the floor to get closer to them. "Their forest spirits."

"Forest spirits? Really?"

"Yea, Lewis was showing me the old place when they appeared to me." Zelda explained. "Me and Abigail have been helping them in secret."

"Helping them?" Leah asked.

"They ask for stuff, mainly crops and fruit but every now and then we get a weird request."

Leah looked a Zelda with amazement, watching her lovingly play with spirits as if they were small children. She was shocked she was actually in a room with spirits that her girlfriend took care of.

"So do they speak to you? Can you understand them?" Leah asked joining the blonde on the ground, letting the spirits move closer to her as well.

"No, they leave messages in books." Zelda said pointing at a strange looking book across the room. "You're taking this much better than I thought you would."

"Well there's a little piece of me thinking this is all a dream but… I've always believed in spirits, I just never believed I would see one in my lifetime. Or that my girlfriend would be a secret spirit caretaker."

"I'm sorry I kept it a secret for so long but I wasn't sure exactly how to break it to you."

"Don't be, I totally get why'd you keep this a secret. Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

"Well...I am training with a wizard." Zelda said hesitantly.

"What!" Leah said, once again stunned. "I didn't expect that! You now magic?" She asked excitedly.

"No! not really." Zelda said blushing shyly. "I'm still learning, I can't do anything that impressive."

"Come on! Show me something."

"Uh…" Zelda said scanning the room for a small item, finally seeing an old doorknob resting on the ground. "Ok see that Doorknob over there." She said pointing across the room."

Holding her hand out and focusing Zelda called the doorknob over. Leah watched in awe as the doorknob slowly rose and began to gently float over towards the two. Zelda still hadn't full mastered the skill and was trying her best to keep it in the air. Half way on its journey Zelda got too tired to keep it going and let it drop to the ground with a large thump.

"Sorry. It's still pretty difficult." Zelda said shyly.

"This incredible! I'm dating a superhero!" Leah shouted excitedly.

"I wouldn't say that…" Zelda blushed.

"No way, you're incredible and you should know it." Leah said wrapping the blonde in a hug.

"I'm glad I can share this part of my life with you now." The blonde said leaning into her girlfriend and kissing her.

"We better be careful in here." Leah giggled. "Don't forget that we have an audience."

Zelda blushed as she remembered the many Junimo watching them curiously.

-Authors Notes-

Hey guys I know its been a while but life has a way of interrupting my 'Writing Time'. Not to mention my attempt at a new project. A couple of things I wanted to say about the chapter here:

Many of you probably weren't expecting a small dive into Zelda's past like that but I thought it was important to show why she was so scared to come out in the first place, showing some of her emotional growth as well. Coming to the decision to come out takes guts, especially for Zelda and I think this was a great moment of bonding between the two. I know the 'in-game' Leah say's she hates violence but I think that when push comes to shove Leah is very protective of the people she cares about. (As seen in her last cut scene.) Besides I really like the idea of Leah being really overprotective of her girlfriend. :D

Another thing I just wanted to quickly talk about is my approach to the Junimos. I know their kind of all seeing forrest spirits but with their design I always think of the soot gremlins from spirited away. This is why I always try to write them with that kinda of childish charm. I compare them to a civilisation of childlike spirits a lot which I think the game should do more. (Quick rant her for no reason.) When you complete a room in the community center I love how the Junimo fallows you around like your now friends, but when you leave and come back he's no longer there!? Why can't I build up a conga line of Junimo's over time that fallow me around every time I visit the community center? Do you know how awesome that would be!? Oh well, thats all from me. Thanks for reading :D


End file.
